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8K views 87 replies 21 participants last post by  BamaCaddy08 
#1 ·
From the 'First on the Forum' files of dubious distinction, don't let this happen while cruisin' through intersections...:eek::(


 

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#9 · (Edited)
In this jurisdiction, no points are assessed and it does not raise insurance rates. Even though the posted speed and your actual speed are clearly shown in the data bar, it is not considered a moving violation but rather a 'civil citation' for the red light only. It's the legal equivalent of a parking ticket. You pay the $75 fine, either online or by phone, and it's over.

Go figure.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Not evident is a hat lying in the crosswalk - I was reenacting the scene from "It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" when Spencer Tracy throws his hat out the police station window, landing in the street and then Jerry Lewis swerves his convertible to run it over - except they got my number :lol:



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#6 ·
those cameras never sleep and their vision is too dang good.
The ticket that Leo got would showed his license plate very clearly unlike whats in the picture we're seeing.

Where I live there are only 3 intersections that have a set up for a redlight camera, but the city only has one actual camera and they randomly move it around the three intersections so we're never sure which one will actually give us a ticket on any given day.
 
#7 ·
The ones here in Albuquerque have a pretty powerful flash. Scares the crap out of you if you are coming from the other direction. The light is blinding. I heard there is license plate cover you can buy to distorts your plate number in these photos. Not sure if it works. Your best bet is to be safe and don't run red lights.
 
#8 ·
I've seen a lot of stuff on the reflectors, diffusers, etc. and none of them work. Anything that will stop the camera's eye would look odd to a person's (cop's) eye and you'd get a ticket. I agree, best to just not run a red light. I'm always more concerned about getting hit by someone than I am a ticket!
 
#11 ·
i had similar situation but i didn't have any license on because i didnt have one yet..lol
plus i was forced.. i was already half way in the intersection making a left turn when the light was still green.. but too many cars coming and i got stuck in the middle or sth..
 
#13 ·
We used to have those around here, they want to bring them back.
They stop people from running red lights and cause accidents, when the lights turn yellow people slam on the brakes to avoid the red light ticket and end up getting rear ended by 2 or 3 cars that can't stop in time.

Personally I hate them, while I agree that they help keep people from running red lights, reasonably intelligent drivers do better by looking around and ajusting their driving to accomodate traffic and conditions, I believe there are times that "running" a red can be justified and an unforgiving camera cannot judge a situation like that very well. Granted most people just run them because they can and probably 90% of run lights are unjustfiable and probably 30% are abuse and could cause accidents. I personally don't think that it is justifiable to hand out violations for such tiny infractions.

They didn't count points here either when they were doing it, only a fine.

Watch mythbusters some time, they did a show on all those "cures" for speed and red light cameras. None of them worked.
 
#15 ·
I could have sworn that there is a radar detector on the market that detects the camera/radar locations and warns you of them ahead of time. If i remember right, it downloads the info similar to NavTraffic. I know it was available and worked in Europe, but I do not remember if it was available in the states. It should be if it is not. I gotta go back and look that up again ... Hmmm.
 
#16 ·
I hate people running red lights....I hed to brake too many times to avoid them...you waiting on lights to go green, then you move....and you have to brake because some idiots are still trying to enter intersection despite light being red for them....

I have downloaded wht is called "proximity alarms" for my wife GPS (Garmin Nuvi). These are for Atlanta red light cameras. The GPS sounds alarm when you get I think 300 feet to an intersection....nice feature.
And yes, in Europe they are readily available, for red light cameras as well as radar traps (permanent ones)...
 
#18 ·
I do like the cameras but only because I've been nearly T-boned many times, despite being an observant, defensive driver. Traffic enforcement is very lax in SoCal, and the running of red lights, especially while talking on the phone, was becoming a constant threat. The cameras seemed to have helped lessen the frequency of such violations, even though they aren't all that common in most areas.

However, many people are confused about yellow lights, red lights, and intersections. The law is pretty simple and I believe the same in all jurisdictions: you can legally enter the intersection at any time before the light turns red, up to the last instant of the yellow light. The yellow light is merely a warning that the light is about to change to red. (See, for example, California Vehicle Code Sections 21452 and 21453.)

Entering the intersection means crossing the limit line, which is defined by the thick white line at each corner, or if there is no limit line, before entering the crosswalk, or if there is no crosswalk, before passing the signal or stop sign. If you get past that point before the light changes red, there's no violation. You are not required to clear the intersection before the light turns red -- although you might get tagged for impeding traffic if you get stuck in the intersection (California Vehicle Code Section 22526).

The confusion about this is widespread. Once I even got into an argument with the instructor at traffic school (in California, if you get a ticket you can often go to traffic school to avoid having a point added to your record -- you still have to pay the fine and pay for the school, which is otherwise a total waste of 8 hours). Anyway, this dopey broad insisted that you have to clear the intersection before the light turns red. I raised my hand and, in my usual charming way, said, "That's wrong!" We got into a heated argument until she literally threw me the book (the California Vehicle Code, which is about the size of a typical bible) and said, "Look it up, smart ass," so I did. When I read the applicable code sections to her, which are crystal clear, she backed down a bit but suggested that I might be misinterpreting the law. Not!
 
#19 ·
Thanks Judge!

I totally agree, the problem with people slamming on their brakes is because they don't understand what the rule of the road is.

IF you can safely stop before the line, before the light turns red - do it.
If you can't, then you're going to be over the line before it turns red and won't get a ticket.

simple and safe.
 
#25 ·
Originally Posted by proexpert
Tom Jefferson, Ben Franklin, and the others would not have allowed this type of activity by the government.

I'm with proexpert on this one. Article Six of the U.S. Constitution says: "In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense." I don't personally believe that the "witness against him" should includes a camera or an electronic device without a human directly involved. I think it means a human witness to the crime.
 
#28 ·
Your suggestion that there can be no prosecution without eye witnesses to the crime is a complete misreading of the Constitution.

Witnesses in criminal cases include the investigators, technicians, and forensic experts who gathered and interpreted the physical and documentary evidence used to establish guilt. That's often far more compelling than notoriously unreliable eyewitnesses.

In the case of the red light cameras, the witnesses include the technicians who install and maintain the devices, experts who explain how it works, and the guy who interprets the photo. The disputes often center on whether the thing is working properly, the length of the yellow light, or whether the person in the photo is in fact the accused ("not me, I wasn't driving"). Those can be tough issues and are often the basis of the case being dismissed, but the absence of an eyewitness is irrelevant.

BTW, if you like the red-light cameras, you just gonna LOVE speed cameras, which are coming to a jurisdiction near you soon. I predict a big increase in the sale of ski masks.
 
#26 ·
So if you rob a store, kill the clerk, and there are no witnesses but there is automated electronic surveilance that catches you, I guess you can't be prosecuted for it, right?

If the cameras are in place and you break the law, they catch you, then you pay.
Whether or not the cameras should be there in the first place is debateable, but....
 
#27 ·
Could not agree more....

We also need to remember that technology has developed in such a way that our founders would never imagine it.....they did not know about cars....computers...digital age etc....is it all good? I do not kow...sometimes i think life was much simplier....then again probably much harder....

My philosophy is - you commited the crime, you got caught, you pay for that.

And it does not matter how the evidence was obtained.....
 
#32 · (Edited)
the red light cameras are freakish big and noticeable in day light.. and a big ass sign will say $341 or sth minimum fine. there are plenty of those in LA downtown area and many in norCal. there are chemical sprays that you can purchase to spray on your license so the camera wont get the license plate # because there will be a reflection. (i think many notice this.. but since depending the GPS, why not do sth easier...)
one of my traffic school instructors was funny.. he said as long as you didnt pass the red light.. you didnt run it.. Say for example.. even when the light is red.. and you run into the intersection, but have a chance to back up..you didnt run the red. so what he means is as long as you didn't pass the point directly and vertically below the red, you are safe. xD

edit:
so in the 2nd pic when the car was in the mid of the intersection, if he backed up.. he wont get the ticket according to the instructor.. -_-
 
#34 ·
I think your instructor is wrong. Or maybe its just in Canada, but if cross the threshold (the crosswalk or thick line or edge of the intersection) while the light is red, you've run the red whether you stop or not. I suspect that if you're going slow enough to just cross part way and then be stopped the camera would show that you were only doing 1-2 mph and the next pic would show you backing up so the person reviewing the pics might decide to let it go.

as for the spray, don't waste your money 'cause it won't work. The camera's lens is just like a human eye so if YOU can read the numbers then the camera can too. If you can't read the numbers then you'll get a ticket for not showing your plate.
 
#36 ·
According to a cop, even a long yellow is a ticket. But I can not imagine how that would stand up in court though because that is a judgement call. If you can stop before the intersection when the light first turns red, you must stop. I did hear of one person I know that did get ticketed for a "long yellow".
 
#39 ·
What exactly is a "long yellow"?

A lot of cops, just like a lot of traffic instructors, simply don't know what they're talking about, or will BS you, hoping you'll pay the fine and not challenge the ticket, thus adding to their quota. (Opps! My bad! We all know that traffic cops don't have ticket quotas, just "productivity goals").

In any case, if you ever do get ticketed for a "long yellow," I suggest you check the vehicle code in your state, which I'll bet is the same as in other states -- no violation if you enter the intersection on the yellow, no matter how long or short the yellow light may be. If that's so, then challenge any such ticket in court.
 
#37 ·
From the Virginia driving manual in the yellow "Caution" light section.

If you have not entered the intersection, you
should come to a stop. If you are already in
the intersection, continue moving in order
to clear it. Speeding up to beat the light
could cause a crash.
So it looks like speeding up to beat the light isn't illegal, just dangerous. Virginia suggests that you to stop if you see a yellow light before you enter the intersection. Sounds dangerous to me. It should say something about continuing if you don't have enough room to stop.
 
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