I work in Juno beach I can say I can’t stand these things. Especially now that there is a study which shows they INCREASE the number of traffic accidents where installed. Well, the Florida Court of Appeals last week ruled that the current way these red light cameras are operated across the state is unlawful.
Under Florida’s red light camera system, a private vendor first determines whether a violation has occurred, then sends it to the municipality to issue a citation. The panel found, under current law, vendors cannot be deputized to perform law enforcement functions.
The court decision concluded…
“For the reasons set forth herein, we… find that the city is not authorized to delegate police power by entering into a contract that allows a private vendor to screen data and decide whether a violation has occurred before sending that data to a traffic infraction enforcement officer (TIEO) to use as the basis for authorizing a citation,”
The ruling is against American Traffic Solutions whom Juno beach uses to operate its’ traffic cameras.
One of the judges on the panel stated…
“Such outsourcing to a third-party for-profit vendor of a city’s statutorily mandated obligation to issue uniform traffic citations for red light camera violations is contrary to the plain wording of the Florida statutes.” And,
“For all practical purposes, it is the vendor that decides which cases the TIEO gets to review. It is the vendor who initially determines who is subject to prosecution for a red light violation; it is the vendor that obtains the information necessary for the completion of the citation; it is the vendor that creates the actual citation; it is the vendor that issues the citation to the registered owner of the vehicle; and, it is the vendor that eventually transmits the traffic citation data to the court. Although the city may have some input into who eventually is prosecuted, that decision is wholly dependent upon the vendor’s initial determination.”
I honestly believe it’s just another tax. If it doesn’t reduce traffic accidents then it is NOT being done to protect the health, welfare and safety of the citizenry, it’s being done to raise revenue. We just placed law enforcement resources in a tax collection position.
11/03/14 – I just saw this letter on the Town of Juno beach web site where they announced the suspension of the use of traffic cameras.
