Speed Camera Inequities: A Citizen Speaks Out

Speed cameras rolled out across Arizona as a statewide initiative to curb speeding in 2008 amidst protest and controversy. These cameras now pepper the roadside, often in locations that capitalize on reduced speed limits, difficult merge areas and long wide open stretches of highway. Despite the fact that there have been many recorded instances of incorrectly issued tickets, inconsistencies in citation and conviction, Arizona motorists continue to endure the speed camera's presence. We often encourage you to act on issues that affect you, and in this case, you do not have to simply tolerate injustice. Below, is a letter written by an LD20 citizen that we have been given permission to publish. We encourage you to share with us your issues and how you have taken action to address them! You can email us at ld20dems@gmail.com to share your stories.

Dear Mr McCain,

I am writing you today because I feel that our traffic and justice system are broken. This leaves our citizens and residents of Az feeling helpless, over scrutinize with not much added benefit and unsafe. Please let me expand.

In Phoenix many, many speed cameras (stationary and vans) have been installed, sometimes feet after a speed limit changes to 10 below where the speed cameras are. All of these speed cameras are machines that have any error, like any machine. The judge representative that heard my case in court and RedFlex witness both agreed that the cameras probably have 1 mph error inhered in them (although I have heard higher numbers for this error from police officials-the complaint line that the court gave me to report this- to be higher).

The fact is also that people also slow down when they see these cameras, which likely causes a lot of accidents. I have personally been rear ended on 5 different occasions (none being my fault) because of stops and goes in traffic flow. I can see a lot of potential accidents occurring from these cameras. This is a bad thing.

In addition, I feel that our justice system is flawed. I was tried by a judge representative that is not educated in statistics. I received a ticket for 11mph over the speed limit on a freeway where there were 2 other cars on my side of the free way and they were semi- trucks (not much of a sample size). Also, the camera van was parked feet away from where the speed limit changed from 75 mph to 65 mph. This did not give me much time to react. The RedFlex witness based his whole case on statistics, yet he could not tell me how they were calculated or what the sample size was. The judge representative listened and did not care. In fact he ruled in favor of RedFlex in every case that came before him that I saw that day. I sat through 3 other cases.

I feel that this was not a fair trial for 5 reasons. First, my friend Adolph received a speeding ticket for doing 11mph over the speed limit. He went to court and was found innocent in a Phoenix court (cmp number was 50179704). I was tried for the same thing and found guilty. Second, the judge representative ruling ruled against all of the defendants in his court room (that I saw). Third, the judge representative did not recognize error in the machines and misleading statistics from RedFlex (sample size 3 cars and misleading scatter plot). Fourth, I was given a help line number (from the court clerk) to a police officer’s answering machine that stated that the error on the speed cameras was up to 3 or 4 mph wrong and the court would not accept that and denied that the officer was affiliated with the court even though in the same court, it was the court clerk that gave me the number. Fifth, I tried to appeal, like the court clerk suggested, and a judge in the court said that he would not hear the case unless ordered to by the Supreme Court since it was already ruled on. It is $78 to file an appeal. I do not feel that my ruling was fair, but I feel helpless to do anything about it. Do you have any suggestions? I have a 7 day time limit.

Please write me back with suggestions about what I can do for my case and please look into all of the things I have written about our system.

I am very proud to be an American; however, I am not proud of the above.

Thank you for your time and attention,

Erin