Ruling on Use of Symbol on Traffic Ticket Delayed : Law enforcement: Judge says he needs to review several issues involving a police officer accused of using a Christian sign next to his signature.

A South Bay judge has delayed ruling on a motorist’s claim that her traffic ticket should be dismissed because the Manhattan Beach officer who wrote it drew a religious symbol next to his signature.

Municipal Judge William G. Willett said Wednesday that, before ruling, he needed to review cases on other legal issues that were raised in traffic court Wednesday by Santa Ana attorney John R. Farris Jr., who represents the motorist, Kathleen Parsons.

Willett told Parsons that she will be notified by mail, probably within a week, about whether the ticket will be dismissed.

Parsons, a Manhattan Beach real estate agent, maintains that the ticket should be ruled invalid in part because the officer who pulled her over indicated his religious preference on the citation when he drew the outline of a fish, commonly used as a Christian symbol, next to his name.

The officer, Steve Fletcher, said he did not mean to make a religious statement and that the outline was merely part of his signature.

“I’ve been signing my name like that for years,” Fletcher said. “I just don’t see how this is an issue in this matter.”

Parsons was issued the citation in October for allegedly failing to make a complete stop. She denied committing the violation and said she noticed the symbol two weeks after receiving the citation.

“I was shocked at first,” Parsons said. “I thought, ‘Is this ticket endorsed by Jesus Christ? Is the officer passing judgment on me?’ I had a thousand questions.”

Farris, Parsons’ attorney, said that state Evidence Code prohibits attaching religious symbols to official documents, including traffic tickets, and that Fletcher’s signature could improperly enhance the credibility of the officer.

“We have two very conflicting stories” concerning the alleged violation, Farris said. “I believe the officer has put a religious symbol on the traffic ticket” to buttress his credibility as a witness.

Manhattan Beach City Prosecutor Gregory P. Palmer, who monitored the trial but did not represent Fletcher during the proceeding, said the Police Department stands behind Fletcher’s explanation of his signature. Palmer said that Fletcher has signed thousands of tickets with the symbol and that Parsons is the first to complain.

Fletcher said he began signing his name with the symbol, known as an ichthus , the Greek word for fish, about 2 1/2 years ago.

If Parsons is found guilty of the violation, she faces a $104 fine. However, she has called the issue “a matter of principle.”

City officials initially believed that the signature was inappropriate and intended to tell Fletcher to stop using the fish figure, Police Chief Ted Mertens said.

But after consulting with legal counsel, Mertens said, officials concluded that “wouldn’t be appropriate because he has an individual right to how he signs his name and that, in fact, we have no evidence that he has been proselytizing in his work.”