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posted by
janrinok
on Saturday April 05 2014, @07:03PM
from the I-would-have-been-here-earlier-but... dept.
from the I-would-have-been-here-earlier-but... dept.
The legality of red-light camera evidence in California is set to be reviewed by the California Supreme Court.
Ars Technica reports, the California Supreme Court is hearing the case in an attempt to answer three basic questions:
- What testimony, if any, regarding the accuracy and reliability of the automated traffic enforcement system (ATES) is required as a prerequisite to admission of the ATES-generated evidence?
- Is the ATES evidence hearsay?
- If so, do any exceptions apply?
Cameras in Ohio are also facing state supreme court scrutiny. The SCOTUS has been silent so far on traffic cameras but has previously ruled on the need to be able to be able to question diagnostic equipment operators to ensure a fair trial to avoid hearsay.
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State Supreme Court to Rule on Red-light Cameras
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You will step on the night soil of many countries.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by cmn32480 on Saturday April 05 2014, @07:46PM
In Maryland at least (you know, the land of taxing EVERYTHING including the rain) I believe that the citation has to be reviewed and signed by an officer, and the officer or the company that maintains the cameras are who you would face in court, should you decide to fight it.
The red light camera tickets also do not carry points in this state because they often cannot prove who was driving, and the fine goes to the owner of the car, not the driver. I believe that the speed cameras work the same way, no points, and issued to the owner of the vehicle.
Either way, both types of cameras do little to protect the safety of the public. For instance, there are speed cameras on I-95 at the END of a construction zone that has been there for at least 5 years. They are only supposed to be active when there are workers there. It has been proven that they are active 24x7. I have never gotten a ticket from them, but when driving past the site at 1am with no lights on in the construction site and 15 inches of snow on the ground, I saw the flash going off of people getting tickets.
IMHO, because there are no points attached, it looks to me like it is strictly a money grab to help balance the overspending of the state and local government.
"It's a dog eat dog world, and I'm wearing Milkbone underwear" - Norm Peterson
(Score: 2) by fliptop on Saturday April 05 2014, @10:11PM
I believe that was the last straw for my mom, who moved to South Carolina shortly after that tax was implemented. But, O'Malley got reelected somehow, so I guess they're reaping what they've sown.
To be oneself, and unafraid whether right or wrong, is more admirable than the easy cowardice of surrender to conformity
(Score: 2) by hubie on Sunday April 06 2014, @12:00AM
You might be interested in the little town of Morningside, MD. They own about a half mile of road just outside the Andrews air base. They've set up two speed cameras and there have been many complaints about them [wtop.com]. My biggest problem with speed and red light cameras is that there is no accountability. Both the city and the contractor have a financial interest in issuing the most tickets they can, and there is no oversight to determine whether they are both doing it honestly (like in Morningside).
(Score: 2) by mojo chan on Sunday April 06 2014, @09:05AM
It seems like even the testimony of a cop or an employee of the camera operator would be hearsay. They have not examined the devices for themselves, they have not verified their operation. Instead they had a very high level overview of how the cameras work explained to them, probably not even by the engineer who developed them, and then took the word of the installation and calibration reports at face value.
If accused I'd want to see source code for the embedded part of the system, full schematics and then question the engineers who developed it and the people who installed it.
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)