Some advocates continue to clamor for speeding cameras to be set up in Kern and Tulare Counties, but the movement has attracted almost no converts.

Civic leaders in San Francisco are leading the charge, after two bicyclists were killed in one week in two different speeding-related collisions. Advocates claim that, once the cameras went up, speeding dropped 30 percent in Portland and Chicago. Municipal Transportation Agency Director Ed Reiskin called camera installation a “no-brainer,” citing a National Highway Transportation Safety Administration study which concluded that cameras reduce speeding by 25 percent. He and others envision a system in which camera citations would be no-point infractions with fines of around $100.

Assemblyman David Chiu (D-San Francisco), a speeding camera supporter, says that about sixteen bills have been introduced since 2007 to change the Vehicle Code and legalize speeding cameras, but all of them have failed.

Speed Traps

The provision Assemblyman Chiu is referring to is VC 40802, the speed trap law, and there is a lot of confusion about this provision. Some people believe that speed traps are things like officers concealing themselves behind bridges or congregating for the purpose of handing out speeding tickets. And, in a way, these things are speed traps. But an illegal speed trap is:

• Cameras: Using a clock or timing device to calculate speed based on distance is illegal. Speeding cameras take one picture at Point A, another one at Point B, and determine vehicle speed based on the amount of time it takes to travel from A to B, and that is illegal.
• No Study and Radar Enforced: The lack of current engineering studies made headlines a few weeks ago. But, for the tickets to be invalid, the officers must use Radar, LIDAR or some other means of electronic enforcement.

If your citation involved an illegal speed trap, an attorney may be able to get the case thrown out.

Getting Legal Help

The aggressive lawyers at Bigger & Harman, APC, are committed to giving individuals a voice when dealing with speeding and traffic tickets. Call today at 661-859-1177 or email attorney@markbigger.com to receive the personal professional attention you deserve. En español, llame al 661-376-0214.