This story starts back in May. My Girlfriend (I often refer to her as my wife as we have been together long enough that she should be) was driving my van on the other side of town. She says that she sneezed as she was coming up to an intersection and she ran the red light. No accident or anything like that but there was a red light camera that recorded the incident and I was sent a ticket because I am the registered owner of the vehicle. The ticket was for 158.00 and had provisions on it to pay on line. Susan gave me her credit card and asked me to use it to pay the ticket. I went onto my 10 year old laptop that is slower than molasses and pulled up the site. I entered my info including email address and then I watched the video of my van run the light. I then go to the next screen and at the bottom is a button that say"PAY". Next to the button is a notation that says" Push Payment Button One Time Only". I push it once after entering the vard info and my computer takes forever but finally goes to the next screen that says if you entered your email address you can review this at any time. I then close the computer. About two weeks later I get another ticket in the mail. This one is for 260.00 for not paying the initial ticket. I call the phone number on the ticket which is the court house. I told the woman who answered what happened. She said what was the confirmation number. I told her it didn't give me one. She said there was nothing she could do but I could appear in court and plead my case but I would have to pay court costs in order to appear. Two weeks later Susan went to the court house to pay the ticket. The clerk informs her that my license has been suspended for non payment of the ticket and there is an additional fee of 30.00 dollars. I also that day get a notice in the mail that my license was suspended five days before. So I have been convicted of a crime and sentenced and penilized for a crime I didn't commit and the fine went from 158 dollars to 290 dollars. The story doesn't end here. I decide that they won't get me for another red light camera violation so I went onto Amazon and buy that license plate covers that block photos from being taken of my plates. I put one on each of my three vehicles. They are 30 dollars each. A few weeks ago Susan gets pulled over by Florida Highway Patrol and get a ticket for I think 150 dollars for not wearing her seat belt. He comments that the plate covers are not legal. Today Susan get pulled over again by the Orange County Sheriffs Dept. And is given a ticket for 114 for an obstructed licen
se plate. He then unbolts the plate from the van with the cover and the plate surround and confisctes the plate cover. He then but the plate back on. Susan calls me and I an 25 miles away. She tells me what is happening and I tell her he can't do that. This is private property and he can't do that. I request to talk to the deputy on the phone. He tells Susan I am stupid and refuses to talk to me. I tell Susan to tell the cop that this is private property and demand that he puts it back . He tells Susan that is is being held in a criminal investigation and he has every right to take it. I called the Sheriffs Dept. To talk to his supervisor and complain. He tells me thay if I want it back I have to go to court and ask the judge to ask for it back but prepared to get a bigger fine and possibly jail time because it is an illegal item and was used in the commission of a crime.
I thought I lived in the United States where a motor vehicle and what is attached to it was personal property. I guess I moved to Cuba and didn't know it. I think the hole thing is BULLSH**. What do you all think? Gregg
Just as a side note, if you put wide tires and wheels on your car and they stick outside your fenders they are also illegal, if you add extra springs and air shocks to the back and raise the rear , the bumper height is no longer in spec making your car illegal. Theoretically a cop could pull you over and take your tires, wheels, shocks, and springs because they are illegal. If it is ok for the cops to take one thing who says they can't take more? Just a thought.

 

Florida does nad always has gotten away with things that wouldn't fly anywhere else. My dad went to jail down there for speeding in his 18 wheeler, and he was on an on ramp when the cop said he was running 90 mph. In the 70s. Trucks today can't go that darned fast.

I would ask them to prove that you were driving hte car. Florida is a weird place to live like that. This isn't communism, it's more socialism... more the sort of system Hitler lived in. More like you woke up in **** Germany or Fascist Italy.

 

Man that is messed up

 

yea even with the camera there is a slim chance they could prove u were operating the vehicle. as for the plate thing.... this is why in NJ it is extremely dangerous for us to carry fire arms. cop or no cop I'da popped his pigskin for coming near my ride with a bit driver. hopefully ur "wife" got his PIG number so you can report him for his conduct with the traffic stop at the least. but if u see a reasonable judge u'd prob pay orig fine like u intended and go on ur way.

 

That is messed up - but if you found out that plate covers were illegal why didn't you take it off in the first place?

 

That's really messed up.

 

Two reasons. The first is I don't want another red light camera ticket. If they can't photograph it they can't ticket it. I wasn't even driving and they suspended my license. The red light cameras should be illegal for a few reasons. First they don't give you a sporting chance like you have with a cop. Can't argue or plead your case with a camera. Second; they actually shorten the yellow light to increase the number of violations. Third; they claim that it is a safety thing that they create fewer accidents. The studies reveal that they actually cause more accidents and the type of accident shifted from T-bone which still occur to more rear end collissions. The only reason for the cameras is for revenue generation and it is free money. Catches every violator with no cost associated with the district who installed the light. Next the cameras are not operated by the district. They are leased by a third party vendor who pockets more than half the fine.
The second reason I didn't pull it off is I figure that if I get one or two tickets a year for the cover it is just part of the cost of driving. I am irrate that they stole my property and call it confiscation because a crime was committed.

 

After I calmed down and Susan calmed down we talked some more and I found out that she got pulled over in a McDonalds parking lot and she had to drive thru a mall parking lot to get there. So this cop didn't even see her on a public roadway. She was on private property. Where do the rights violations stop? Would a burnout in my own driveway be illegal?

 

Glad I live in Nebraska. Good luck in court man, that would **** me off.

 

Well heres the thing.. .the cop knows you had to drive on public property to get into that mall. He knows nad I know and you know damn good and well that he shoudln't have to follow you onto a public roadway to catch you, and we all know damn good and well that you didn't just stop in teh parking lot, put the cover on, drive thru the lot, get out, and take it off.