Only three lawmakers in the entire Mississippi state Legislature are willing to put themselves on record in support of red light cameras and speed cameras. Without opposition, the state Senate passed legislation yesterday that would put an immediate halt to the plans of several municipalities interested in implementing new photo ticketing programs. The vote followed last month’s 117-3 passage of a similar ban in the state House. State senators, however, did not believe that the House language went far enough.
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The Norcross, Georgia City Council voted Monday to end its relationship with LaserCraft Inc., a red light camera company whose US headquarters lie just three miles down the road from city hall. LaserCraft’s troubles began last year when the Georgia General Assembly enacted a law requiring a one second increase (over the minimum national standard) in the yellow signal warning time at any intersection equipped with a red light camera. City documents show that once the law took effect, the accident and red light violation problem in Norcross virtually disappeared.
New York City announced last Monday that it will install automated bus lane ticket cameras in defiance of a decision by the New York state legislature last year to reject the concept. Mayor Michael Bloomberg crafted a plan to bypass lawmakers and use the power of the city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) to issue $150 tickets to cabs that are photographed straying momentarily into the specially marked lanes. Bloomberg hopes that once the camera program is operational he can convince lawmakers to give him the authority to expand the program beyond cabs, allowing every vehicle in the city to be ticketed.
Arizona’s top state-level prosecutor has challenged the most prominent county-level prosecutor’s interpretation of the state freeway speed camera statute. State Attorney General Terry Goddard issued a memorandum to the Department of Public Safety and to county prosecutors declaring his interpretation of the law would allow motorists to be locked behind bars based solely on a photograph generated by the fixed and mobile cameras operated by the Australian company Redflex Traffic Systems. Goddard took action in direct response to Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas who announced Monday that he would not bring criminal charges against anyone accused by a Redflex machine of driving more than twenty miles per hour over the speed limit.
The New York Times has brought it to our attention that you can now buy speeding ticket insurance! Ticket Assurance will cover the cost of up to three moving or non-moving violations and two tow truck calls per year for $15.95 per month. The firm was founded by an Atlanta-area businessman who was inconvenienced as much by the process of dealing with taffic courts as he was by the fines he’d receive for speeding. “I didn’t want to take time out of my day to plead my case for something I knew was wrong,” says Terrence Byrd. “I thought there should be someone who should handle this.” So he started the firm which now has about 1,700 customers in 23 states. Subscribers are only covered for moving violation fines of $1k per year ($500 for non-moving), but Byrd says membership pays for itself if you receive $200 in fines per year. DUI, reckless driving and felony charges are not covered, nor are single moving violation fines of more than $350. All the restrictions take away much of the advantage over a radar detector, but if you know you are going to be speeding a lot, it might be worth the peace of mind.
In a 2-1 decision, The Eighth District Ohio Court of Appeals ruled last week that Cleveland couldn’t issue red light camera and speed camera tickets to the drivers of leased vehicles. The dispute arose after a pair of speed camera tickets were mailed to the Dickson and Campbell law firm in January 2007. Attorney Blake A. Dickson noticed that under Cleveland’s ticketing ordinance, only the registered owner of a vehicle could be held liable for an automated ticket. He then appealed the $100 fines before the Cleveland Parking Violations Bureau, arguing that his law firm leased the car from VW Credit Leasing, the registered owner. “OK. Well, we are going to go after the [lessee] then, sir,” the hearing officer said as he declared the firm guilty.
Motorists will no longer be sent to jail on the mere accusation of a machine in Maricopa County, Arizona. County Attorney Andrew Thomas yesterday announced that he will dismiss all criminal speeding and reckless driving cases brought to him when the only evidence presented is a photo radar ticket. Thomas condemned the process that imposes jail time on those accused of driving 20 MPH over the speed limit without any human witness to the alleged crime.
“The bottom line is, the way the law is written and the way our Constitution is written, to bring criminal prosecutions based on photo radar evidence only is not something our office can do, or frankly should do, given the Constitutional mandates,” Thomas said.
Instead of digging into the murky finances of federal teat sucker and Chrysler owner Cerberus, The Detroit News has focused its investigative expertise on the automotive lifestyles of the Presidential Automotive Task Force. I’m not sure exactly how this counts as “gotcha” journalism—and neither is author David Shepardson. “The vehicles owned by the Obama administration’s auto team could reflect one reason why Detroit’s Big Three automakers are in trouble: The list includes few new American cars.” Care to expand on that thought David, or just fan the flames of anti-DC hatred simmering in the automotive heart of Bailout Nation? Thought so. Sherpardson reveals that the ratio of domestic owning to foreign driving members is two to eighteen. Shock! Of course, “information was not available on all of the officials, and records for some states were not complete.” Never mind. ‘Cause in this particular witch hunt, if you EVER owned a foreign car you’re named and shamed, I shit you not.
The mayor and police chief of a federally-funded Louisiana speed trap town were arrested Wednesday on felony corruption charges. A Tensas Parish grand jury indicted Waterproof Mayor Bobby Higginbotham for felony theft, malfeasance in office, payroll fraud and using public funds for personal use. Waterproof Police Chief Miles Jenkins faces three felony counts for receiving bonuses for meeting traffic ticket quotas and altering traffic citations. The activities of both officials were fueled by federal taxpayer dollars. In 2007, Higginbotham received $37,500 from the US Department of Agriculture Rural Development’s Community Facilities Program for the purchase of two police cars fully equipped with the latest speed detection equipment. Higginbotham ordered Miles to use these vehicles to prey on State Highway 65 travelers as the speed limit dropped without warning to 45 MPH within the town limits.
Red light camera supporters insist that the devices are needed to prevent the common and deadly T-bone style of accident at intersections. In practice, however, automated ticketing lenses are more often positioned to photograph a different type of violation, one that rarely causes accidents. A review of US Department of Transportation statistics shows that an average motorist could drive a billion miles—the distance from Earth to Jupiter and back—before being involved in an accident that resulted from a motorist making a rolling stop on a right-hand turn.
A New Zealand resident who wants a red light running warning citation sent to a stranger or an enemy only needs to call a toll-free phone number. On Tuesday, the Manukau City Council unveiled its program that allows anyone to contact the police and accuse someone of an intersection traffic violation. “We’re asking the community to join the council in sending a message to these drivers that it’s not on,” Manukau City Council member David Collings said. “If people see drivers running red lights they should dial 0800 STOP 4 RED.”
Connecticut Governor Jodi Rell (R) is proposing a budget that increases the financial burden on drivers by $171M in order to close the state’s growing $850m deficit. Rell’s plan increases license and registration fees, imposes freeway speed cameras and assesses new charges on speeding tickets. If implemented, the programs would represent a permanent and steadily increasing source of revenue for the state.
With municipal budgets tight across the state of Colorado, members of the General Assembly are looking to offer relief. The Colorado state Senate Transportation Committee voted 4-3 on Thursday to boost the cost of a speed camera ticket from $40 to $75. The measure, Senate Bill 143, also extends the reach of photo ticketing to include nearly any road that runs through the state.
Last May, the state authorized the use of freeway photo radar which allows the placement of automated ticketing machines on high-speed roads by erecting a sign that says “work zone.” The bill introduced by Colorado state Senator Bob Bacon covers most of the remaining roads within the state by allowing photo ticketing on any road with a speed limit of 50 mph or less. Combined with the higher fees, the revised program is expected to generate millions in additional revenue. The Senate committee voted to direct this money into funding accounts labeled “traffic safety.” The bill must now be considered by the full Senate.
On February 13, 2004, two families in separate vehicles were driving at the “Four Corners” intersection of Highways 14, 34 and 63. These roads merge together on a sharp curve in a blind crossing without a stop or yield sign. The two cars collided nearly head-on, taking the lives of three and severely injuring four others. The surviving family members sued Darren Griese, in his official capacity as South Dakota Department of Transportation (DOT) Pierre Region Traffic Engineer. On Wednesday, the South Dakota Supreme Court issued a ruling absolving the state from any liability in cases where it fails to warn motorists about roadways with an inherently dangerous design.
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According to a Winnipeg, Canada court ruling issued last month, “work zone” speed camera tickets are invalid if they are issued in an empty work zone. Judicial Justice of the Peace Norman Sundstrom tossed citations issued to nine defendants who traveled through workerless work zones without exceeding the normal speed limit for the road they were on. The decision was based on a nuanced reading of the interplay between the provincial photo radar law and the law governing construction zone warning signs.
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