Tuesday 25 November 2008

Man wearing speed camera costume gets a ticket

I love this story from Pistonheads. It shows how people can be both clever and stupid at the same time.


A red light camera in Arizona has snapped what appears to be a speed camera behind the wheel of an SUV. On September 14 the camera in Peoria photographed the car going through a red light split seconds after it changed.

But when the citation was issued the photograph clearly showed a person dressed up as a speed camera for an afternoon behind the wheel. Australian company Redflex, which runs photo enforcement programs for nine jurisdictions in Arizona, sent the ticket automatically to the Peoria Police Department for approval.

But according to reports state law requires the driver to be positively identified before the citation is issued. This is detailed on the Tuscon Police Department website: 'Does a Police Officer review my complaint before it is mailed? Yes. Every violation is reviewed by a Tucson Police Officer prior to a ticket being issued. The officer confirms the elements of the violation ensuring that there are grounds to believe a violation was committed, confirms the plate is readable and the driver is identifiable.


'The officer compares the photograph of the driver to the driver's license photo when possible. If there are reasonable grounds to believe an offence was committed and the person driving the vehicle is the one named, the officer places their name and badge number on the ticket and authorizes it to be issued. We believe that review of the violation by a trained police officer is critical in ensuring integrity in the process.’


If this is true the officer who issued the citation cannot have identified the driver without noticing his head was shrouded by a painted cardboard box.


Captain Gatso, of Motorists Against Detection, said: ‘We clearly all need to go down to our local supermarket and get a cardboard box and spray it yellow.’


CG

The Motorists Friend

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