I got hit with a red light camera ticket the other day. The traffic light was green. I did not slow down, and entered the intersection. The yellow lasted 2 seconds, then the traffic light turned red and SNAP my picture was taken. I got the first of two mailings which told me to confirm that it was me driving. The camera takes a picture of the driver and of my rear license plate. The camera does not take a picture of the intersection and there is no video to prove what I am saying is true.
I called the court to find the law on red light cameras. I was told that ever since June 1 of 2017, if one inch of a car is in the intersection when the light turns read, a traffic violation occurs. In other words people cannot enter the intersection under green and have it turn yellow then red very quickly. That is a traffic violation.
I hate red light cameras. The primary reason I hate them is that there is no human to see the big picture or the entire situation. Well, there is a human, and that human is me, but no one asked me what I saw. There have been multiple news reports saying that private companies own and operate red light cameras in California. They send photographic information to the police and get a kickback when the fine is payed. This makes two things obvious: 1) the fine must be higher to pay this third party; and 2) this third party has one motivation: to make a profit. They are not doing this for the good of the county. They are doing this and they entered into a contract with the county to make money, period.
There is no way to contest a red light violation in court. Normal traffic court allows people to appear and give their side of the story. Last time I received a traffic violation, I appeared in court. The officer who wrote the ticket did not, so I won. With a red light violation, the only defense is that I was not driving, which I was, so there is no defense.
Red light cameras seem wrong. I want vindication for this violation. I want the full story, of a very short yellow, to be told, but it will not be told, because that defense is not allowed. I have to wonder if all law enforcement was automated, how people would like that. Clearly this is a path I do not want law enforcement to go down. In the future I will not cross that intersection. The government has succeeded in changing my behavior.
The second mailing I received was the bail amount or the amount of the ticket. $490 is due in the court by February 15, 2018. A fine of that amount leads me to believe that this is nothing but a cash grab and has nothing to do with public safety.
I called the court to find the law on red light cameras. I was told that ever since June 1 of 2017, if one inch of a car is in the intersection when the light turns read, a traffic violation occurs. In other words people cannot enter the intersection under green and have it turn yellow then red very quickly. That is a traffic violation.
I hate red light cameras. The primary reason I hate them is that there is no human to see the big picture or the entire situation. Well, there is a human, and that human is me, but no one asked me what I saw. There have been multiple news reports saying that private companies own and operate red light cameras in California. They send photographic information to the police and get a kickback when the fine is payed. This makes two things obvious: 1) the fine must be higher to pay this third party; and 2) this third party has one motivation: to make a profit. They are not doing this for the good of the county. They are doing this and they entered into a contract with the county to make money, period.There is no way to contest a red light violation in court. Normal traffic court allows people to appear and give their side of the story. Last time I received a traffic violation, I appeared in court. The officer who wrote the ticket did not, so I won. With a red light violation, the only defense is that I was not driving, which I was, so there is no defense.
Red light cameras seem wrong. I want vindication for this violation. I want the full story, of a very short yellow, to be told, but it will not be told, because that defense is not allowed. I have to wonder if all law enforcement was automated, how people would like that. Clearly this is a path I do not want law enforcement to go down. In the future I will not cross that intersection. The government has succeeded in changing my behavior.
The second mailing I received was the bail amount or the amount of the ticket. $490 is due in the court by February 15, 2018. A fine of that amount leads me to believe that this is nothing but a cash grab and has nothing to do with public safety.
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