Cincinnati judge orders all speed cameras confiscated, manufacturer held in contempt

This guy may be my new hero.

In a recent court hearing, Judge Robert Ruehlman ordered them not only to be shut off but to be impounded - taken off the streets for good.

The drastic action comes because his original court order, issued back in March, apparently was ignored for the sake of $ -- shocking!

Back in March, this judge ruled that the use of these cameras was unconstitutional and ordered them to be shut down, along with the ticket program they engendered.

But, the Elmwood Place police department did not follow the judge's order and kept the cameras in place.

A legal battle ensued and the judge not only did not back down, he actually ordered the cameras to be taken down and impounded, while holding the manufacturer in contempt.

During the June 27 hearing, Ruehlman found that his order had been violated in a number of ways. First off, the cameras had been turned back on, though Elmwood Place Police Chief Bill Peskin said during the hearing that they were only used to collect traffic and speed data, not to collect license plate information or to issue new traffic tickets.

Yea right! Only used to collect traffic data - while $48,000 more was collected.

"The traffic camera company collected the citations, and apparently continued to collect money sent in after the judge's March order," WLWT reported.

"There was testimony in court that some $48,000 was collected, with a percentage of that money passed on to the village per the speed camera contract. Optotraffic did not have a representative in court Thursday.

Mike Allen, an attorney who is part of a legal team fighting against the speed cameras, called them a "money grab."

Small town, small progress, but it has to start somewhere. I'm just happy to know that ethics actually still exist.

www.naturalnews.com...

This judge IS my new hero.....and precedent is set!

Hip Hip Hooray..

~For he's a jolly good fellow~

How do I contribute to his reelection campaign?

I live in Cincinnati. It is not a small town.

It is a hotbed of conservatives who support the Constitution so the ruling makes sense.

Good post. Thanks!

Originally posted by rival
This judge IS my new hero.....and precedent is set!

Hip Hip Hooray..

~For he's a jolly good fellow~

How do I contribute to his reelection campaign?

Indeed and well done for the people's interests.
If the Fifth required that I am allowed to face my accuser, it's at
best dubious the witness against me is human and not programmable.
For the judge, maybe some circuit positions should be lifetime
appointments... my stronger thoughts go out for his continued safety
in all areas.

I actually got to know judge Ruehlman, I worked at a retirement home where his mother lived.
He seemed like a really level headed guy and was pretty cool.
Those damn cameras were a real pain and I'm glad to see them go!

reply to post by derfreebie

If the Fifth required that I am allowed to face my accuser, it's at best dubious the witness against me is human and not programmable.

That is the point. Thanks for expressing it so clearly.

But, perhaps more disturbing, is the fact is that even after being told to cease and desist, the "town" continued the operation - illegally, for just a few more dollars.

The same thing happens down under.

And all in the name of revenue. When times are tough the fuzz will pinch you for anything...when I used to carpool for an old job the cops would lay in wait en route to work, then pull everyone over and ticket them for bald tyres.

And the cops have at times a 'booking quota' where they have to claim a certain amount of infringements, these are usually in the hoildays when there are more people are on the road.

And where do this revenue go? hospitals? Roads? No. Straight to the politicians, who've just given themselves a 57,000 dollar pay rise.

The Judge ought to have the town Council members and Police Chief repaying that $40,000+ out of their personal money for restitution. That might give others a moment of pause before doing the same thing. It doesn't sound like any individual people will have much to worry about here, although it's individuals who decided to shove the Judge's order.

It's a profitable little business

Optotraffic had already received a $500,000 cut of the town's $1,500,000.00 speed camera ticket haul by the time of the ruling.

www.mddriversalliance.org...

And , if you want to fight the ticket, you get the pleasure of paying a $25 fee to do so.

reply to post by Metallicus


Yeah.. I was going to say, Cinci is decent sized city. I don't live too far away. I like Cinci and Columbus (wasn't too keen on Cleveland).

The police should be held in contempt, too.


Although to play devil's advocate, I will say one thing: I would probably rather have more speed cameras than constant traffic patrols by cops. When I visited New Zealand, I was surprised to see that traffic cops were more of a rarity over there. Much of their traffic infractions were handled by speed cameras. As such, patrolling cops tended to only go after people who were driving recklessly, like drag racers.


My objection to this is that in the USA it is a very common tactic that traffic patrols and even very minor violations (like having a tail light out, failure to use a blinker... though to be fair that one one is a little dangerous and I hate people who do it) are used as a pretense to profile people, pull over certain types of people, or people in certain areas, in order to illegally search them for contraband. It is a very old and wide-spread practice that needs to stop.



I'd like to see statistics for traffic violations prior to, and after the beginning of the USA's War On D***s (it's own citizens.)

Finally some one who isn't totally bought out and has a pair of cajones.

reply to post by Maluhia


That is all traffic cameras are made for, to increase state, county and city revenues and to promote "Big Brother" government. Unfortunately, this doesn't go for every other district, city and state. I would love to see this issue reach the Supreme Court, yet I wonder at how deep the corruption goes in the Court itself.

Actually there is a bill that has been passed by the Ohio House (goes before the Senate in the Fall) that would outlaw such cameras (speed and red light) statewide with the exception of school zones.

reply to post by rival


Yeah, precedent which is binding in one tenth of one millionth of the United States. Elmwood Place is a whopping 1/3 of a square mile and their mayor's court has no jurisdiction or precedential value anywhere else in the world.

reply to post by Ahabstar


Great information. Thanks. Wouldn't it be nice if it passed - one to watch for sure.

At least the speed and red light cameras will not pull you over and drag you out of your car and beat you up. Or shoot you dead. Or ask to search your vehicle because they imagine they smell something on you.

People who speed and run red lights should just think for one moment about the many people who share the roads with them at any given moment. Perhaps if you have a tendency to speed you should quit waiting until the last possible minute to start your journey. I am all for people who run red lights getting heavy fines and tickets.

reply to post by groingrinder


But they change the timing on those red lights for a super short yellow to take advantage of the point of no return in which if you hit the brakes you would be past the line and ticketed for going through the intersection. They also snap a picture if make a right turn on red, which is legal in Ohio unless posted otherwise.

With the speed cameras, there citations issued for 1 mph over the limit on some cameras. Meanwhile they publicly claim that no picture is taken unless 10 mph over the limit.

In both cases, calibration records are not available if you take it to "court" (which is always a mayor's court--never before an elected judge). The cases are considered to be civil cases rather than criminal cases. Civil suits require a victim (or their representative) stating the grievance and be available for cross examination. Failure to pay the fine changes it from a civil to criminal case in order enforce the fine. Again, no witness to cross examine. In both cases, due process is denied.

The cameras are being recognized as nothing more than a money grab, hence the bill that was passed by the Ohio House.

Speed limits are usually posted on freeways. Everybody knows what they are. The cameras do not force anyone to speed. I agree that you should be able to face your accuser and it is wrong that with the cameras you cannot do this. I HAVE NO SYMPATHY FOR SPEEDERS OR RED LIGHT RUNNERS. I have seen too many people who do this and behave like their little mission to get home from work in record time takes precedence over everybody elses lives and safety. These are the same folks who careen across three lanes of traffic at the last minute to make their exits without so much as a signal or glance to check for safety.