Camera image should not be sole tool for nabbing violators

Published Thursday, March 8, 2007

Minnesota lawmakers who want to make it legal for cities to cite drivers for traffic violations based only on the evidence of cameras have taken a wrong turn.

A bill working its way through the Legislature would let cities mount cameras on stoplights, and use the pictures those cameras generate to fine drivers if their car is shown driving through a red light. It’s a system that could generate big revenue for cities — Minneapolis fined its way to $1 million in profits last year before a judge halted the practice — but that makes a travesty of the presumption that Americans are innocent until proven guilty.

The problem is that the camera can only show which vehicle has blown through a red light. It can not show who was driving. As a result, municipalities would levy a traffic violation against the vehicle’s owner, whether or not the owner was at the wheel. That is a ridiculous perversion of justice, because many cars are driven by people who are not the registered owner. It is certainly common for one person in a household to be the title-holder on a vehicle that is driven by a spouse or child or other family member.

Sure, using technology to catch traffic offenders would be convenient. It would help fill the coffers of local government. But it is just plain wrong to use that technology to simply nab anybody for a traffic violation, whether or not that person is truly guilty.