As you know, I told you a few weeks back that this redlight camera case was coming down the pipe. However I had no idea that Munson was subpena’d – Whoa Nellie.
Sioux Falls Mayor Dave Munson is fighting a subpoena requesting his videotaped testimony in an ongoing lawsuit over red-light cameras that nab motorists in the downtown area.
Fire up the Mariachi band, here comes the Mexican Hat dance;
Wiedermann has said the cameras at 10th Street and Minnesota Avenue unfairly target motorists. Among his lawsuit’s claims: That the defendants “altered the timing of the lights to increase violations in order to increase profits.”
Kind of like code enforcement fines jumping from $1,900 a year to $60,000 a year in less than 5 years. “But Hey, we are not out to make money, just to harass the shit out of the people who pay are wages.”
Munson seems to be confused about what it means to sign paperwork and be accountable for that signature, legally;
“He signed the contracts with Redflex,” Eiesland said. “At the end of the day, he’s the one for the city who signs off on all these things.”
Remember when Northside Davey was being investigated for campaign finance violations? He said he would have to get in touch with his treasurer because he didn’t know the deets . . . yeah, right Dave. Seems Dave doesn’t have a problem with taking credit when he builds $3 million dollar roads to nowhere in the form of flattering plaques of his face (that are put up in the middle of the night) but when he has to be accountable for the very unconstitutional and illegal operations of red light cameras that’s got nothing to do with him.
You can RUN but you can’t HIDE Dave from the US Constitution – ironically kinda like those redlight cameras.
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Yesterday a group of who watch Sioux Falls city government closely had lunch to compare notes and fellowship. We all kind of have our pet areas we watch.
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I found out yesterday that the Event Center Task force still meets, and they have put NOTHING on hold. They still intend to push the legislature for a tax increase in 2010 to help build the Event Center. They also have decided on a location. They want to tear down Howard Wood and build it there, it is believed that Darin Daby from the School Board is on board with the idea.
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Anyhoo . . .
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The discussion switched gears to the red light cameras (something I am opposed to) when one guy in our group mentioned he challenged his ticket since he was a member of a national motorists club (they also oppose the cameras to). It all started after he got his ticket and contacted them. They provided him with a form so he could see if the cameras and lights were timed correctly, they were not. Something he brought up in his hearing. Also in his hearing the city engineer could not answer the timing question and the reason they gave why the cameras were put in was because of a lady being killed in that intersection. His response to them made total sense, “So the rest of us citizens are being punished for what one person did?†You can thank the Argus Leader for their media blitz about the death (she was an employee). Though her death is tragic, and no disrespect is meant by me saying this, he is correct in his response. The person who was responsible for her death had their day in court and received punishment for the crime, so why are the rest of us being punished for it? After he told us the story, a fellow city-watcher was invited over to tell us about his class-action against the city for his ticket. He is the first person out of 19,000 tickets issued to sue the city over his ticket, and he has a good chance of winning.
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Here’s some ‘Fun Facts’ about the camera that the public has NO clue about
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–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Most motorist clubs oppose the cameras because they are deceptive. There is several lawsuits across the country challenging the cameras. The states usually lose and take the camera’s down. In Michigan they were forced to give the money to education, and once the state realized they were not getting a cut anymore, they took them down.
–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â South Dakota State law states you can turn right on red as long as you stop first and yield. The city has NO authority to dictate that at any intersection.
–         The camera’s are timed to the nano-second and take the picture of the offender before they are supposed to. Motorist clubs have proven when cameras are timed this way, it caused the city to collect 50% more tickets and actually causes 50% more accidents. I guess people have seen city workers timing the cameras in the middle of the night (1 AM – 2 AM). If they are not doing anything deceptive, why do they do it in the dark of night?
–         If you get a camera ticket at the intersection it is a ‘civil’ offense, not a ‘criminal’ offense, because for it in order to be criminal, a police officer has to write the ticket. If you don’t pay the ticket the worst that will happen is the city will sue you in small claims court and have a judgement against your credit. This is wrong, because the city should not be able to disrupt your credit because of a traffic violation.
–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â The independent counsel has a direct conflict of interest because they are hand selected by the city and they negotiate a fee they receive on every ticket that is paid. They basically are receiving a commission for everyone they get to pay the ticket.
If you are interested in joining the class-action, email me and I will give you the name of the lawyer representing it. Fb.art@sio.midco.net