Prosecutors tossed out a $344 littering citation against a driver whose money fell to the ground after he reached through his open car window to hand it to a panhandler.
The city dropped the ticket because it decided the cash didn’t qualify as trash, assistant city prosecutor Jonathan Cudnik said during a court hearing Thursday.
John Davis, of Elyria, had pleaded not guilty to the minor misdemeanor earlier in the week and said he was determined to fight the ticket.
He said he was trying to help someone in need when he handed the money to the panhandler, who was in a wheelchair at a busy intersection during rush hour on May 17. A police officer who was behind Davis saw the money hit the ground and cited him for littering.
Davis told reporters Thursday that he was glad the matter was now over, but he said he’d no longer give money to people along the road and instead would give to charities.
