pcar964

That is exactly right - our 5th amendment should knock that one out of the park. As far as the cameras that take pictures of the driver through the front windshield, I guess it's time I started wearing my helmet

SJB993

And .....

The police began to notice a drop in revenue when word of mouth quickly broadcast where the latest camera had been erected. To counter this they now have mobile cameras mounted in vans. They just park them up by the roadside somewhere and leave the camera happily clicking away. B*st*rds!

Texas993

In lovely Scottsdale not only do we have cameras at major intersections (for speeding and running lights) and randomly parked vans, we recently had them installed on the local freeways.

The vans are the only ones that use radar, and the signals are weak so you have to slow immediately after an alert.

We love and embrace technology.

Mark in Baltimore

Thanks for the warning, David.

Bogwan

We are to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. Beyond reasonable doubt? I don't see anyone proving I was driving, beyond a reasonable doubt, or forcing me to incriminate myself either.

Can't these things be fixed with a can of spray paint, or better yet a paint ball gun.(oh what fun!)

hennw

Gentlemen, you are all living in heaven compared to Germany :-) We have fixed cameras, vans and even hidden cameras in dustbins at the roadside. Since the revenue stream is so interesting for Governments you will see the same development in other countries as well, I'm sure.

BTW, police goes the extra mile to figure out who is the driver on the made photograph - you might get nice visits at home or even at your office reception - that's 1984 !

Ed_M

As a sidebar, in California we are seeing a stricter enforcement of the law requiring a front license plate. I heard recently that this is now a moving violation instead of a fix-it ticket.

Also from the LAPD website:

What if I am not the driver in the photograph? An affidavit will accompany the citation. The registered owner must complete the affidavit, identifying the driver, and return it to the Department within the specified time. The citation will then be re-issued to the correct violator.

jimbo3

Ed- what happens if you plead the 5th on the affidavit???

Howdy993

If the Government wants the revenue , why not get it up front with some sort of prepaid card ie fuel wasting tax that gives you a pass if your grabbed by the long arm the law. Obviously DUI Reckless etc don't apply but hell I'd give a couple hundred for a few free passes. Anybody else?

Ed_M

jimbo3...

Ed_M

Ed- what happens if you plead the 5th on the affidavit???

jimbo3...

Beats me. I guess you fight it out with a judge. My thought would be to search the obituarys, pick a name, and put that on the affidavit. Let them try to collect that!

On another note, here is a link to sign an online petition to revoke the law that requires a front license plate in California. Sign if you wish.

http://www.petitiononline.com/caplate/petition.html

pcar964

Sad but true, that's definitely 1984... But I like my helmet idea, I don't think it's illegal to wear a full-face helmet while you're driving is it?

hennw

A helmet is probably not saving you in Germany - even if you might circumvent the fine once and for the driver after that officials will turn to the *owner* of the car and might mandate to write a trip book (is that what it's called in english ? a list with start, time, reason for trip, driver, end time, destinaton etc) - so wearing a helmet all day might be a bit tough in comparison what you gain

rountreed

Living in Germany may I recommend a TomTom GPS with the downloaded cameras from POI Warner, this has saved me many times from a ticket and god bless those Germans they list every mobile and permanent location red light and speed cameras. As far as the USA and not paying that is nice talk but you will get a ticket in the mail at which point you can pay or protest, if you protest they send you a nice picture in the mail. I have also seen license plate covers and some sort of a new flashing device which is supposed to help make your plate non readable. As far as the spray in the can forget it unless it is an old camera the new ones used regular and reverse light in order to counteract the glare on a plate.

Ron_H

In California it is definitely illegal to go without a front plate, and though the actual wording of the law prohibiting covers has not yet been tested to my knowledge, it is vulnerable in my opinion. As the possessor of non-photo covers, I get stopped and written in my home area and it is a $10 fix-it ticket. But the fine for red light cameras or photo radar is around $300. I have a long way to go to reach that amount. The law says you may not place anything over the plate that would obstruct vision of it. One bear wrote the ticket and never asked for my registration or looked at the front plate, and he placed the correct number on the citation. I was tempted to go to court and ask how he got the number if the plate was obscured? The non-photo covers allow clear view of the number from directly behind but not at a 45 degree angle from above. So the answer is clear: the plate was not obstructed from his view or he wouldn't have been able to read the number. Well, I have deferred to paying the $10 and writing it off to charity, since not paying it would jeopardize some moron's job and livilihood.

As for speed cameras, THINK ABOUT IT. ( just a teensy bit ) You will understand why they are illegal. Start here: why do you have a speedometer in your car? Instantaneous speed readings are what the cameras are recording. If you know what the procedure is for determining speed violations, you will conclude the illegality of the cameras. THINK about it. If ever there was an issue that was misnamed, this is it. This is about nothing more than revenue. And what if the limits are set illegally contrary to law? Don't even think about telling me the law is followed by our public spirited officials when setting speed limits. And what about the fact that limits are not necessarily safer? The red light camera photo tickets are processed by the manufacturers who share in the take, and shorten the yellow light interval which increases the number of rear end collisions. Someone said some citizens in other countries have shot out cameras..... Show me a California statute that authorizes use of speed cameras.

The legislature overrides the Governor's veto, and who then is lining the legislature's pockets??

Blah, blah, blah. WHAT are we Americans, who ARE our government planning to do about this?? What?