Each Wednesday, we’ll publish quick summaries of the articles from the last week on TheNewspaper.com. We’re doing this because these articles are often strongly connected to the issues that National Motorists Association members are interested in.
Wednesday, September 17, 2014
Delaware Court Overturns Hearsay Traffic Stops
A police officer may not pull over and search a motorist because he heard from a cop in another car say that the motorist failed to use a turn signal, a New Castle County, Delaware court ruled on Thursday. Judge Diane Clarke Streett denied the state’s attempts to rehear the case of Dilip S. Nyala on the grounds that certain types of traffic stops allow one officer to radio his observation of an alleged violation to another.
Tuesday, September 16, 2014
New Jersey Senate Committee Votes To Ban Out-Of-State Photo Tickets
Democratic and Republican members of the New Jersey Senate Transportation Committee are in full agreement on one thing: Red-light cameras and speed cameras are about making money, not improving traffic safety. The panel on Tuesday unanimously approved a measure modeled after a South Dakota law that would immunize the state’s residents from photo enforcement tickets issued by other jurisdictions.
Monday, September 15, 2014
Florida: Red-Light Camera Ballot Battle Hits The Courtroom
Officials from the city of Brooksville, Florida have been conspiring with photo ticketing vendors to keep residents from having a say in whether red-light cameras are used in the community. Patrick and Shirley Miketinac successfully filed a petition calling for a vote on a city charter amendment that would outlaw the use of cameras. As soon as the supervisor of elections certified that a sufficient number of petition signatures were valid, the city’s leadership began coordinating with Sensys, the private company that runs the camera program, to block the Miketinacs’ access to the ballot.
Sunday, September 14, 2014
Maryland, France, Germany: Speed Cameras Shoved, Shot, Spraypainted
A police officer rammed a speed camera in Berlin, Germany last week Sunday. According to Bild, the patrol van was involved in an accident with another vehicle and spun into the camera mounted on a traffic island.
Friday, September 12, 2014
Federal Government Pours $25 Million Into New York Anti-Driving Campaign
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s controversial “Vision Zero” program of deploying speed cameras, reducing speed limits and massively ramping up the issuance of traffic tickets has received the blessing of the Obama administration. On Tuesday, the US Department of Transportation announced $25 million in federal gas tax funds would be given to New York City Department of Transportation in support of the mayor’s initiative.
Thursday, September 11, 2014
DC Speed Cameras Have Not Improved Traffic Safety
Washington, DC has been using speed cameras for more than a decade, but traffic safety has not improved. The city’s private vendors have mailed more than 7 million photo tickets and collected a half-billion dollars in revenue, yet injury accidents have not declined as they have throughout the rest of the country.
