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Cops Forced To Pay Red Light Camera Violations

wfaa.com — Officers and firefighters who run red lights will soon have to face the music to the tune of a $75 fine.

Who dugg this? Made popular Apr 13, 2007

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  • stephenv, on 10/12/2007, -3/+73Firing may be a bit harsh, but I agree that they should be held to the same standards they are supposedly enforcing. I'd go a step further and say they should know better and get slapped with a wreckless endangerment citation as well since they should know more than the average citizen how dangerous their actions are.
  • JamesWilson, on 10/12/2007, -8/+65What really irks me is the cops who turn on their lights or sirens just to get through the red lights and turn them right back off after they pass through.
    PISSES ME OFF!
    They think they are above the law!
  • tehbored, on 10/12/2007, -4/+52Yeah, officers do abuse it. I don't know if it should apply to firefighters though. I mean, how often do they take those trucks out when there's no fire? Even the small ones.
  • ShyGuy91284, on 10/12/2007, -1/+26$75? Is that what the civilians have to pay there? I got f*cked by missing a yellow light once and it cost like $250 as I remember. I hope they are paying the same amount for it as civilians would.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -4/+27The most infamous violation is the use of their shiny red/blue lights to cross an intersection and you see how they cruise at 30mph after that, no emergency at all, they just do it because nobody is stopping them.

    Also illegal u-turns on busy streets, stopping traffic so they can carry on with their driving, again...no emergency.
  • hppypnts, on 10/12/2007, -2/+24"There are 39 red light cameras around the city, and since mid-January, at least 355 emergency vehicles have been recorded running them.

    While not all of them are from Dallas, the Dallas Police Department has investigated nearly a dozen cases and found the officers had legitimate reasons for running the light."

    Hmmm... 355 violations... 12 investigated by the parties involved... 0 guilty... makes perfect sense.
  • adml_shake, on 10/12/2007, -1/+20"I don't know if it should apply to firefighters though."

    Maybe they are talking about the volunteer firefighters. Thats been a problem in my area for the past few years. These guys get called in and think because they have that blue light flashing (or whatever it is in your state) that they are immune to traffic laws and drive 90 miles an hour. After the second car accident the state troopers from the local post started pulling these guys over when they were in route and laying heavy fines on them. The problem seems to have gone away for now.
  • godphase3, on 10/12/2007, -3/+22@tehbored

    The second leading killer of firefighters is vehicle accidents, the vast majority in their personal vehicles responding to a call. Anything to deter them from driving recklessly while responding to a call.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+19I am amazed that the general public even tolerates cameras at intersections.
  • kitwaites, on 10/12/2007, -0/+16Rubbish. These people are in charge of enforcing the law, they should be held to higher standards than the rest of us.

    Case in point: I hold a personal licence to serve alcohol in the UK. If I get done for an alcohol-related offence (e.g. drink driving) I get my licence taken away and a much harsher penalty than a normal person, because I definitely should know better. These are guys getting PAID to uphold the law, and driving on petrol paid for by the taxpayer. They should be model drivers.
  • darlok, on 10/12/2007, -1/+16how about speeding? can't tell u how many times i've seen a cop just whipping by me on the highway, no lights.
  • asaturn, on 10/12/2007, -4/+19what I like is when cops here (columbus, ohio) turn on their lights and park in the MIDDLE of a busy street to run into a bagel/pizza/sub/donut shop to get some food... that's not an emergency, sorry.
  • MNTWINS, on 10/12/2007, -2/+16Just cause they're cops they get a damn discount. Thats *****
  • jager719, on 10/12/2007, -1/+15@bartman:
    except when i see cops do that, and after patiently waiting at the light, i find them parked in a dunkin dounuts down the road. no joke. Plus i drive around a lot late at night, when theres not a lot of traffic, and i constantly see cops not even slowing down for a red light. these fines are long overdue.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+15If you say the same thing twice in a row with different punctuation, you have something to worry about.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+15Ok so the real question is, why didn't the existing traffic laws apply here in the first place? Instead of writing specific laws for specific circumstances, they should just clean up the existing ones to make sense. Not doing so makes the legal system more inaccessible for most citizens.

    The government ceases to represent the people when the laws are so complex that most people can't be bothered to understand them. This just adds to the complexity.
  • clesters, on 10/12/2007, -3/+16Running red lights is one thing...

    What annoys me more is when a squad car flies past you doing 90+ MPH without sirens or lights.
    If that was me driving 90MPH they would flip out, but it's okay for them when their shift is done?
  • polyGone, on 10/12/2007, -1/+13It's nice to see police being held to the standards they are there to uphold.
  • james2die4, on 10/12/2007, -3/+15All the cops I know in the NYC and Long Island area make over $100K/year + pension. And many (if not all) of them have college educations. Not sure of your point.

    (No, I am not a cop nor do I have a family member who is a cop.)
  • BooostedAWD, on 10/12/2007, -3/+14I totally agree, cops take the power to their heads. They think they can do whatever they want, when they want.
    Officers that do things like this, I agree, SHOULD be fired. I was shocked when I was coming home from work and I saw two officers STREET RACING each other from a stoplight. Tires squealed and everything.
    Cops are basically ordinary people with a power.
    They should have listened to Uncle Ben: "With great power, comes great responsibility"
    Obviously officers today don't abide by the laws because they think with a little power, laws mean nothing to them..

    Makes me sick.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+13Red lights cameras are *****. I remember reading a story about them a while back. It stated that motor vehicle accidents at red light camera intersections had increased by something like 30%. Motorists are now panicking and stopping suddenly to avoid a ticket. The whole point of MV tickets is to correct dangerous driving behavior and to make revenue for the city/town. Its seems Dallas doesn't give a ***** about the former and is just looking at the dollar signs.
  • kammy4u, on 10/12/2007, -8/+19Everyone is concerned about how fast firefighters drive, until it is your house on fire... and then we can't get their fast enough.
  • lpmiller, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11I think it's awesome that the supreme court of minnesota outlawed photo radar.
  • alphaeno, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9Im a Criminal Justice major and I am very passive. Just like any profession, you will always have good and bad people in it. I doubt that you know this, but cops in Northern California easily earn 6 figures with OT.
  • Heiios, on 10/12/2007, -3/+11Good! Im glad these armed tax collectors of America have to pay their 'taxes' too.
  • rmad1949, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Too many laws, too many cameras on our streets.
  • dregan, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8It's about time. There were a couple of students at my college that were killed when they were hit by an officer speeding through a red light with no lights or siren on. This has always pissed me off.
  • Berkana, on 10/12/2007, -6/+13It's about time!
  • bigwyrm, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6So as long as I feel safe while running red lights, its okay? I would love to see that one tested in court.
  • Foenetik, on 10/12/2007, -4/+9Bout time someone started policing the police...even if it's only to curb them from running red lights.

    http://www.wurzeltod.ch/blog/pig_220604_02.jpg
  • universal12, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6I see cops running red lights all the time as well as never signaling.
  • KissTheRing, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6@asaturn

    Why should a person be ok with being spied on by big brother for no better reason than they aren't doing anything wrong. I'm all for punishing those that violate the law but doesn't this punish everyone.
  • RatTrap, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6Yeah I don't think they should fine the firefighters, cops ok because they do abuse there power.
  • LonesomeFighter, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5same, and they never follow the speed limit.
  • kweee, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4The other day, I was at a red light. It was late, and I was turning onto a main road, so the light was taking a long time to change. There was a police car next to me who was obviously tired of waiting at the light, but there was a red light camera at that intersection.

    So after waiting with me for three minutes, he turned on his flashing lights (no siren) and ran the red light. The red light camera flashed while he had his lights on. Once on the other side of the intersection, he turned off his lights.

    I got his license plate and patrol car number, but I'm really not sure if I should do anything about it. I expect nothing would be done unless I filed a formal complaint, and I don't want to be identified as someone who rats out police officers.
  • eggo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5I live in Dallas. Last year I made a right-on-red and according to the officer, I didn't make a complete stop first (1am, anything is possible) My ticket was $212 for "failure to obey a traffic signal", plus my insurance went up.
    $75 is a joke.
  • TBagwell, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4only $75??? here in CA its a lot more than that.
  • TBagwell, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3kcmedic is 100% correct -- even a minor bumper-scraper can bring a world of hurt to the career of an EMT
  • mbrutsch, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I've lived in Dallas for the last 10 years, and I see cops run red lights at least once a week (typically using their lights/siren *only* to get through the light). That may not sound like much, but I only drive back and forth to work. I'm sure the average UPS driver sees a lot more than that.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I have seen an officer look the other way when a wreckless driver drove past him. He was heading the same direction I was. I then observed him pull into a driveway at what I assumed to be his house. I guess his day was over so he didn`t feel like play police officer anymore.
  • intense321, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5I flagged a cop down for running a red light once. I threated a citizen's arrest. He just laughed at me and drove away. Prick.

    I also had a cop rear end me once. He backed up and drove away before I had a chance to react. Hit-and-run from a ***** cop. Unbelievable.
  • xcrypt, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3i live in chicago and in one of the not to great neighborhoods. lotsa cops and 'narcs'.
    i cant count how many times where ive had to slam my breaks at a stop sign when they decide not to stop.
  • kcmedic, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4People that drive emergency vehicles ARE held to a higher standard if something goes wrong. I understand your point and they should be model drivers, but the fact is (at least in the US) if you are in a wreck, you are held to a higher standard.

    As for people complaining about using lights to clear an intersection and then turning them off, there are plenty of legitimate reasons for that. That's not what this is about. It is about just plain ol' running red lights.
  • Dustin00, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3[whine]Leading by example is haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaard.[/whine]
  • weaksnyc, on 08/14/2009, -1/+4I don't know about the rest of you, but id rather a cop put his lights on and go past me through the red light then have him sitting behind me for 10 more blocks.....
  • Beto0707, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Red Light Camera violations are civil offenses, that's why they are $75. There's less proof needed in these civil cases. You could get out of these tickets if they were criminal, b/c the camera can't prove that "you" were driving.

  • member57, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I live about 150 miles west of Dallas, running a red here gets you $150.00 fine, I'm sure Dallas is much the same.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Funny, I know a lot of cops. And every single one of them is just like any other normal person.

    You watch to much TV.
  • ybfree, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2It is about time! They need this fine in New York!
  • asaturn, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5cops get discounted traffic fines? wtf?
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