Ticket Scalping

Re “Scalpers Pay Dearly in Inglewood,” March 31: Selling tickets, whether for profit or loss, may be the most victimless of victimless crimes. That the police have nothing better to do than arrest a film producer, Curtis Paine, for holding up two fingers really shows that Inglewood has its priorities wrong. Hardly victims, the event promoters, whom these laws are really designed to protect, have already been paid the very price they originally set for the seats now being resold.

As your article points out, those really hurt by a no-tolerance anti- scalping policy are Joes like you and me. At today’s prices, even if they could get them, many sports fans can’t afford season tickets. However, they can pay for a game or two. Why then should the government care whether a quiche-eating club seat holder recoups all or part of his likely $100-plus loss by selling an extra ducat outside an arena to a purchaser willing to pay?

JEFFREY MITCHELL

New York

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If local municipalities insist on making it illegal to sell extra tickets to willing buyers, then a legally sanctioned means of exchanging surplus tickets should be instituted. Tickets should be redeemable at face value and made available for resale to other buyers without any markup or service charge.

The event producer or venue should be made to bear the financial burden of opening this extra window at the ticket booth in return for the privilege of imposing inflated prices and opportunistic processing fees at public events.

MICHAEL GASTALDO

Santa Monica