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Originally posted by sauerkraut
quote:
Originally posted by patric
Other than AAA condemning Red-Light cameras for widespread abuse, we have a state law that essentially says a vehicle cant be charged with a crime -- you have to cite a driver.
Yes, but they get around that. There's also places that have automatic red-lite cameras that take the picture and mail it in. No cop is involved. Yet when ya go to court you have a right to face your accuser and a right to cross-examin your accuser, but they have ways around that. It does not apply here, the picture is all the proof that's needed for a conviction. They have your face and your license plate & your nailed. It's been thru the courts and most have up held the automatic cameras as being legal, also the camera company gets a cut of the ticket money too. Some people have said the camers are set too fast and will nail ya when the light is really yellow. Arizona and parts of Iowa use the automatic red lite cameras, and many east coast states use them.[xx(]
Have you ever been to traffic court in Tulsa? You are guilty when you walk in the door. A few years ago, I had to go in for multiple infractions (a very long story) and the judge was the most arrogant, self-absorbed, disrespectful person I had ever seen. The judge told people to shut up; Told people to plead guilty and just pay the fine; Explanations were cut off mid-sentence and people were told they were wasting the court's time.
It was merely a collections process. Cruel - at least in my mind - was that even those who fought back and were found not guilty, had to pay court fines, other fees, and lawyer fees. The message is: If a cop stops you for a traffic violation - just pay the fine - you're gonna lose anyway. It is part of the fund-raising monster the system has created.
And people wonder why so many people are afraid of the police and why they freak out when they're stopped.
