The second bit seems superfluous.
That’s quite the conclusion, Suffolk County. I don’t suppose you have learned anything else from this study?
I’ve long been tempted to do something similar.
Not with red-light cameras specifically, but public CCTV cameras in general. And not actively moving them or destroying wiring, but just hanging plastic bags over them to obscure their view.
I’d always wondered what, if any laws that might break.
I rationalized it as there’s no specific assurance that just because a camera’s pointed in a particular direction that there has to be anything there for it to see.
I openly profess my love for this Gentleman.
Meanwhile a dude rapes a woman, gets 6 months.
If it’s an easily removed cover and the camera is in a public space then it seems like fair game. Though if you are talking about UK CCTV “for public security” cameras there may be a specific law against intentionally obstructing them. Plus, asshole cops and/or judges might interpret the act as vandalism just to be assholes if no other law applies.
First to type what basically everyone is thinking.
But he faced six years.
Just got a red light camera ticket in San Francisco. I could understand maybe a hundred bucks as a deterrent, but the $500 that it cost me is simply a regressive extortion. Researching these things I found many cases where the cities ended up making things less safe to increase revenue. Even madmen like this guy can be right.
If only there was some sort of warning that the light is going to turn red soon.
Well, there had been…
Maybe Suffolk County is training people to drive in Quebec City, which has short yellows and no all-red grace period. Driving in Quebec City certainly trains you not to run yellows; you’ll get T-boned if you do.
Well of course.
Red Light cameras were installed around my city and people quickly soon found out that the appeals process left zero time to do anything, so you’d de-facto pay the fine, or face more punitive fines. (Don’t even get me started on how that negatively impacts a greater portion of lower-income people who can ill afford to pay trumped up “public safety” fines).
Studies in the following months proved that accidents at intersections usually went up. Thankfully the damn things came down, but these moronic, public-welfare fines are almost always a shakedown for municipal budgets.
Researching these things I found many cases where the cities ended up making things less safe to increase revenue.
Reminds me of how in NYC they used to (and probably still do) leave dormant fire hydrants in place simply because they generated so much money in parking fines.
I bet they’d charge you, at the very least, with littering and/or tampering with government property.
Now if you had a “misaligned” spotlight at your home, one that “happened” to have been jostled from where it was pointing at a sign on your yard until it pointed at the camera, why that’s just an accident.
If I had to cover the camera, I’d hang a large sign for a political candidate on/over it and try to play the First Amendment card. It probably wouldn’t work, but it would certainly get support from some subset of the public. Or I’d hang a replica of the Big Brother poster from the movie 1984 on it (“forgetting” to cut out the eyes to let the camera see) and argue it as either a work of art or a work of political criticism.
Part of the issue is that the gubmint decreases the duration of the yellow light from 5 seconds to 3 seconds when they install the cameras, in the examples shown in this video at least. It seems pretty likely that they do that specifically to entrap people. There’s lots of problems with that, and as the guy points out a biggie is that its massively dangerous and results in lots more accidents (as well as lots of effin tickets).
Lock 'im up.
Let 'im go.
In all seriousness, I’ve “run reds” before where the alternative is either crossing the intersection right as the light changes or coming to a screeching halt, sometimes in the snow. Cutting down yellow light time is just a recipe for disaster. I’m not a telepath, I don’t know when the light is going to turn, no matter how slow I’m going.
I assumed that all CA cities were like L.A. – paying the ticket is optional in LA County.
Your comment must have been read a hundred times and yet doesn’t have a hundred likes. I feel oddly compelled to spell out what you’re implying.
Also, the lesson from this article is if you’re going to do a public service like this, then do hide your identity.
@stephen_schenck Do not get caught, FFS. They will definitely find something to charge you with, terrorism charges being one possibility. The thing I daydreamed about, back when I had a climbing gym in my town was to synchronize watches with as many people as possible and each scramble up one of the poles with a can of spray paint.
