I still am not reading the NYT piece but the original Denver7 piece which lists these infractions: - Driving with a broken taillight - Not wearing a seatbelt - Driving with minor damage to a bumper - Driving with a registration that has been expired for less than two months - Relocating a license plate to another visible part of the vehicle - Obstruction of view (such as an air freshener placed on the rearview mirror)

The OP added the other article after posting and realizing the weakness of the argument with just the first source, so I'm not addressing it.