Monthly Archives: September 2013

Ohio Supreme Court Takes Up Photo Enforcement Kangaroo Courts

"Toledo, Columbus and Dayton have joined Redflex Traffic Systems of Australia in petitioning the justices to overturn a Court of Appeals decision from June that found Toledo's administrative review process unconstitutional. The ruling has city officials worried about the potential for losing millions if the court decides Toledo deprived vehicle owners of their due process rights by usurping jurisdiction in setting up administrative panels that offer the accused less of a chance to win their appeal. Redflex in its court briefs claims a loss in the case could cost cities $100 million. Optotraffic, a competing camera vendor, predicted 'copy-cat lawsuits' would be filed in every jurisdiction." Continue reading →

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Maryland: Court Upholds Traffic Stop Over Third Brake Light

"Police in Maryland can stop and interrogate a driver if he is driving a car with a burned out third brake light. The Court of Special Appeals ruled earlier this month that allowing the car to continue with only two functional brake lights would pose a safety hazard to the public. The detective said he smelled marijuana and ordered both of its occupants out of the car. As he started looking inside the car, he spotted a handgun that belonged to Smith. Maryland does not allow citizens to carry a firearm except in rare circumstances. Smith appealed the firearms possession conviction, arguing the initial stop was invalid because state law only requires a vehicle to have two functioning brake lights." Continue reading →

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California: Two More Cities Chose To End Red Light Camera Use

"Though Redflex made $361,200 from operating the cameras in El Cajon, the city ended up losing $62,000 after ticket revenue was split with state and county governments. Money was not an issue in South Gate which also terminated its contract earlier this month. Officials predicted the program would make $75,763 in profit for the South Gate and $336,319 for Redflex out of the $5 million worth of tickets issued. After ten years, the city council decided to end the program based on public input. Cities have also recently been spooked by the Redflex bribery scandal in Chicago, Illinois that has already cut the Australian firm's profit in half." Continue reading →

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‘I Was Stop-And-Frisked By The NYPD More Than 100 Times’

"In 2011, the number of stops of young black men exceeded New York City's entire population of young black men. Daniel A Medina followed the story of one, Keeshan, whose teenage years were scarred by the controversial police tactic a court has ruled a violation of minorities' rights." Continue reading →

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How Cops Are Vetted For Aggression & Insensitivity, With Capt. Ray Lewis

"Abby Martin remarks on the second anniversary of Occupy Wall Street, highlighting a recent Reuters poll showing that only 15% of Americans are satisfied with the government's effort to prosecute Wall Street bankers, and speaks with former Philadelphia police captain Ray Lewis about why he chose to protest in-uniform at Occupy." Continue reading →

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NJ Supreme Court Says Judges Can’t Do Stand Up Comedy

"For the humorously challenged, exposing the funny takes several ingredients. First, you need to be in a position to observe everyday occurrences that can be mocked or exposed for ridicule. Then you need the ability to craft a joke about that topic. Finally, you need the ability to deliver that joke. Vince Sicari has those ingredients. He's also a part-time judge in New Jersey, which is the sort of thing I didn't know existed (part-time judges, not the great state of New Jersey). Unfortunately that apparently makes him the bane of the legal system, as the New Jersey Supreme Court has ordered him to step down from the bench if he continues working in comedy." Continue reading →

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Lawsuit Claims New Haven Police Violated Civil Rights

"According to his attorney, Diane Polan, Luna was riding his bike on Crown Street on the morning of Sept. 25, 2011, when he noticed the incident and stopped to record it on his iPhone. It's not clear exactly what Luna saw, but Polan said he 'observed several police officers interacting with civilians.' Those officers confronted Luna and placed him under arrest. His phone was confiscated and the video erased, according to Polan. Polan said Luna is a former photojournalist. He was charged with interfering with an officer and was held overnight at the police department. The charges were brought before the New Haven Superior Court and later dropped." Continue reading →

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Students Banned from Passing Out Constitutions on Constitution Day

"Modesto Junior College in California told a student that he could not pass out copies of the United States Constitution outside the student center on September 17, 2013—Constitution Day. Captured on video, college police and administrators demanded that Robert Van Tuinen stop passing out Constitution pamphlets and told him that he would only be allowed to pass them out in the college's tiny free speech zone, and only after scheduling it several days or weeks ahead of time." Continue reading →

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Brazilian district bans sales of toy guns to ‘change the culture of violence’

"A Brazilian territory is believed to have become the first region in Latin America to ban the sale of toy guns as the country attempts to staunch an epidemic of firearm-related crime. The initiative to ban the sale and manufacture of toy guns was part of a government program to protect victims of violence. Children were asked to turn over their toy guns in exchange for a book. Local authorities set a four-month deadline and provided trade incentives to stores saddled with stocks of toy guns they can no longer sell. In 2005, the government of then president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (2003-2010) called a referendum to ban the sale of firearms nationwide, but 64 percent voted against." Continue reading →

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