Traffic tickets are difficult to avoid and costly to pay. Knowing your rights and having an effective traffic ticket attorney are essential in order to avoid fines, especially those associated with red light cameras tickets. Let’s start by understanding how red light cameras work:
- Receiving a citation from an officer is completely different from being ticketed by a red light camera.
- Red light cameras detect movement once the light turns red and take a picture of the license plates on any moving cars as they pass beneath the camera.
- The cameras also observe your speed, so accelerating to catch a yellow light may also yield a ticket, where an officer may let it slide.
- Camera malfunctions are common and can lead to substantially more tickets throughout the city.
There is no one to double check the cameras’ information and citations are automatically generated based on the images captured by the camera. The citation is mailed automatically, and no people are involved to judge whether the citation is justified. The most common problems with these cameras are:
- Blurry pictures causing the citation to be associated with the wrong license plate.
- Malfunctioning camera snapping pictures of law-abiding vehicles.
- Without human involvement in generating the citation, it may require a representative from the ticket company to testify in court that the camera was functioning properly. They may not show up.
How can I fight my ticket?
Red light cameras are designed to spit out as many citations as possible. Any vehicle that could trigger a red light violation. Any vehicle violating the speed limit. This quantity over quality means they’re counting on people not fighting their tickets. Many of their citations are legitimate, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t defend your case. These are questions that can be answered by a qualified traffic ticket lawyer.
Florida is changing many of the ways that citations are issued in order to try to remove more of the human element from them. It is important to know that equipment can fail, cameras can capture the image of the wrong vehicle, and wrongful charges can often be sent to your doorstep. Before you think of simply paying a citation, understand that you may have done nothing wrong! Seek assistance from a qualified Orlando attorney who is familiar with the new traffic camera systems.
Call Skubiak & Rivas P.A. for a Free Consultation at 407-894-4449.
