How do i fight a red light camera?

Answer 1

Specific traffic laws used from state to state, but there are some general defenses that have proven effective:

- If the vehicle and driver cannot both be accurately identified, the citation is usually dismissed. Check the photos included with the citation (and check the higher-resolution originals at the courthouse or police station). If the license plate number is not clear or the driver cannot be identified (blurry, shaded or just not you), contest the citation on these grounds.

- Most states require clearly posted signs within a certain distance (e.g. 300 yards in California) of traffic cameras notifying drivers of their use. If no such signs exist, or if they're blocked from view, this could be grounds for dismissal.

- This one's a technicality, but has worked in court. Most traffic codes state that "a driver facing a steady circular red signal alone shall stop at a marked limit line," or something similar. LED traffic signals take approximately 0.1-0.2 seconds to fully light (incandescent bulbs take slightly longer) after power is applied. If your citation shows that you crossed the marked line within this time, you were most likely facing a light in the process of illuminating, not a steady light.

- All states also have minimum yellow light times, which vary according to the posted speed limit. Check your states requirements and then videotape the traffic signal with a decent camera (you can accurately time the yellow light by counting the number of frames in which the light is yellow and dividing this by the number of frames per second). It's rare, but occasionally the yellow light's too short, and this is grounds for dismissal.

*** If you received the citation in California, consider contesting your citation through a Trial by Written Declaration (look up the procedure and requirements online), instead of in person. Police officers are paid (usually overtime) to defend a citation in court, so it's no surprise they almost always show up. However, they get no extra pay to prepare a written defense to a Trial by Written Declaration... apparently, 30% of Trials by Written Declaration result in the dismissal of the citation simply because the signing officer neglects to prepare a written defense of the ticket.

There are other defenses out there, just do some searching. Hope this helps and good luck!