and RICO.
The speed light cameras are really getting some attention here in the Baltimore area. Some cameras have been shown to be off by 20-30 mph. There is one near the local Pepsi bottling company where trucks are "clocked" at 50-60 mph where it is impossible for them to accelerate to that speed.
You've also probably heard that caution lights are often shortened when cameras are installed to raise more revenue.
Just wondering--maybe the lawyers can answer--Is there a possible RICO violation here. A conspiracy needs only 2 parties, right? What if the camera people say, " We can increase the revenues to your jurisdiction if we do __________"?
Would such an action fall under RICO?
Wouldn't it be nice to send some local politicians to jail for a while?
Anyone want to file some sort of class action suit?

( No, I have not been the victim of these cameras--but the issue is a hot one around here.)

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1982 300SD " Wotan" ..On the road as of Jan 8, 2007 with Historic Tags

I beleive this happened in the UK where the speed cameras when first installed were hidden, now they are mandated to be housed in bright yellow huge boxes that can be seen from far away.

This was enforced as - They are supposed to enforce safety not become piggy banks.

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2012 BMW X5 (Beef + Granite suspension model)

1995 E300D - The original humming machine (consumed by Flood 2017)
2000 E320 - The evolution (consumed by flood 2017)

Well, how else can these communities increase their revenue?

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2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

Thankfully, we just have red-light cameras, which I'm much less opposed to than speed cameras. If ill intent could be proven, racketeering charges could stick.

More likely, they'll just say "oops. our bad. we'll refund the fines of anyone affected and promise to be good in the future."

Los Angles abandoned red-light cameras, they achieved the opposite of their goal: better safety.

The contracts cities have with the red light camera manufactures calls for a specific amount of tickets per intersection to pay for it. To achieve this goal the lights are tweaked in such a way that they are assured red light violations will happen; the thing they wanted to avoid in the first place.

And the numbers showed that more accidents happened on intersections with red-light cameras.

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1979 Black on Black, 300CD (sold), 1990 Black 300SE, Silver 1989 Volvo 780, 1988 300CE (vanished by the hands of a girlfriend), 1992 300CE (Rescue).

I got a red light ticket in Bellevue, WA this summer from one of those. I did some things to 1. Reduce the amount of the fine, and 2. Consume city workers' time, so as to reduce the net revenue they got out of me. Having seen the safety data on red light cameras, I'm convinced they are there for revenue only.

Also, since I'm generally opposed to speed limits, it wouldn't make any sense for me to support speed cameras.

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Whoever said there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes never had a cheap Jaguar.

83 300D Turbo with manual conversion, early W126 vented front rotors and H4 headlights 400,xxx miles
08 Suzuki GSX-R600 M4 Slip-on 22,xxx miles
88 Jaguar XJS V12 94,xxx miles. Work in progress.

If someone gets killed in an accident because of the "tweaking", the decision makers should be publicly shot for it. The Chinese have things right in this respect. If your corruption kills someone, no matter how much money you have, you're going to burn for it.

China Ex-Food and Drug Chief Executed - washingtonpost.com

If the intent were truly to increase safety, then they would lengthen the time of the yellow light, and delay the green. That would allow vehicles to clear the intersection, and not worry about being hit in the rear.
Instead, they shorten the yellow light time to catch more people, and get more money.

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1982 300SD " Wotan" ..On the road as of Jan 8, 2007 with Historic Tags

In LA they shortened the yellow light. Also the reaction of drivers was to hit the brakes to avoid the $500 ticket and not giving the driver behind them enough time to stop, causing most of the accidents. Most tickets that were issued to drivers were to ones that didn't make a complete stop before making a right turn, I believe the number was somewhere in the 80%.

Drivers going through a red light is very dangerous but not that common.

I always thought red light cameras made perfect sense but at the end it's only the red-light camera manufacturer that benefits from it and makes a nice profit. For all the other parties involved it achieves the opposite of what was expected. There is hardly no benefit in safety and the revenue made for the city didn't out weight the property damage caused by drivers trying to avoid tickets.

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1979 Black on Black, 300CD (sold), 1990 Black 300SE, Silver 1989 Volvo 780, 1988 300CE (vanished by the hands of a girlfriend), 1992 300CE (Rescue).

If the enabling law was written correctly, the cameras could work. Require footage of the light cycling as well as the car passing through. (You really only need 5 fps, and storage is cheap).

If the light cycle is too short or the footage goes missing, then the judge would be required to dismiss the ticket.

Most drivers that go through red lights do so right after when yellow becomes red. A very small amount of drivers go's through red when the red light is on for a while and if they do a red light camera wouldn't stop them, only catching them.

Make the yellow light longer, stop all traffic for a few seconds before giving the green away and implement stop lights for the left turn at all major intersections. Depending on the time of day and traffic the stop lights should adjust for better traffic flow.

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1979 Black on Black, 300CD (sold), 1990 Black 300SE, Silver 1989 Volvo 780, 1988 300CE (vanished by the hands of a girlfriend), 1992 300CE (Rescue).

That's what they got me for. Also, from the footage they sent me a link to, the light was red for all of 0.2 seconds when I crossed the line. I actually thought I made the yellow until I got that letter in the mail two weeks later. I'm curious if I would have gotten a ticket at all had I been driving my own car with Nevada plates rather than a rental with Washington plates (huge POS Malibu BTW).

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Whoever said there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes never had a cheap Jaguar.

83 300D Turbo with manual conversion, early W126 vented front rotors and H4 headlights 400,xxx miles
08 Suzuki GSX-R600 M4 Slip-on 22,xxx miles
88 Jaguar XJS V12 94,xxx miles. Work in progress.

I hate it when they put speed traps in locations where the primary purpose is to generate revinue such as at bottom of hills with no relationship to speed safety.

I don't mind slowing down for schools and in town.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

I'm definitely in the minority here. I agree with the cameras especially the red light cams. Drivers either adjust or are completely clueless when it comes to different yellow light timing. It doesn't help when every locale seems to have different timing sequences regarding stop light cycles. I see too many people blasting through red lights to ever feel safe entering an intersection on a "fresh" green

Speed cameras here are set up to catch offenders going 10+MPH over the posted speed limit. I'm sorry but if you can't tell the difference between 55 and 45 you probably shouldn't be driving.

The big beef I have with the camera system here is the fact they are only enforceable with in-state vehicle owners. Out of state/country vehicle owners get a free pass as they have no way to enforce the fines.


Hmmm, maybe particle beams instead of camera? No, road runners with frickin' laser beams! THAT'S the ticket!

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“Whatever story you're telling, it will be more interesting if, at the end you add, "and then everything burst into flames.”
― Brian P. Cleary, You Oughta Know By Now

But what if the camera is wrong? What if you were actually driving at or under the posted speed limit, and the camera ticket said you were going 20 mph faster?
Here in MD, the Governor says it is illegal for the companies who make/install/operate the cameras to earn what is essentially a commission on the tickets they issue. Yet that is allegedly what is happening.

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1982 300SD " Wotan" ..On the road as of Jan 8, 2007 with Historic Tags