If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above.
You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed.
To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.
Open ForumsThe Open forum was created for people to discuss anything else Non-Moto related. Just about anything goes! Please remember this is a loosely moderated area. If you do not have thick skin. We suggest you stay out of here.
Dallas police and firefighters will soon have to pay up if they run afoul of the city's red-light cameras.
Starting Sunday, any Dallas police officer in a marked squad car who is captured on the city's cameras running a red light will have to pay the $75 fine if the incident doesn't comply with state law.
Firefighters who run red lights will have to pay if they're not on an emergency run.
Many police officers are angry about the proposed policy. The prevailing belief among officers has been that they can run red lights as they see fit.
"I know that a lot of the officers are not real happy about it," said Senior Cpl. James Bristo, second vice president of the Dallas Fraternal Order of Police. "Nobody out here is just running red lights left and right."
He said many police officers view the new policy as yet another thing they have to worry about.
Under the state transportation code, officers driving a vehicle equipped with lights and sirens can run a red light when responding to an emergency call, pursuing an actual or suspected violator of the law, responding to a fire alarm, conducting a police escort, and directing or diverting traffic for public safety purposes.
"Our policy is pretty clear that they have to drive within the traffic laws" except under those circumstances, said Police Chief David Kunkle, who is meeting with police association officials Thursday to outline the new policy.
Since last year, 39 cameras have been placed at intersections, city officials said. Sixty cameras are scheduled to be up and running by May 22.
Since mid-January, the cameras have recorded at least 355 emergency vehicles running red lights. Not all of those vehicles belonged to the city of Dallas. Notice is sent to the departments so they can determine whether the driver of the emergency vehicle had a legal reason to run the light.
So far, the Dallas Police Department has received notice of 103 marked vehicles and six unmarked vehicles running red lights, said Lt. Sally Lannom, who helped draft the new policy.
Eleven investigations of marked vehicles have been completed, and the officers were determined to be exempt from the fine because they complied with state law, Lt. Lannom said. "They were responding to an emergency call," she said.
Out of the six unmarked vehicles, three officers were found to have run red lights without proper cause, Lt. Lannom said. They will have to pay the fines, she said.
Cpl. Bristo said officers are worried that the policy won't have enough leeway and won't take into account extenuating circumstances.
"I think what they're worrying about is what if it's 2 o'clock in the morning, you're headed to a call but it's not an emergency call," Cpl. Bristo said. "If I roll right through that light, I might save myself a minute or two. With some calls, that minute or two can make a lot of difference."
Not running red lights when it appears safe to do so would affect a perennial area of concern for officers and Dallas residents: They want police to be at the scene of a crime, even a crime that is not life-threatening, as quickly as possible.
One example illustrates the type of situation that concerns police commanders.
Cameras recorded an officer on routine patrol not only running a red light, but also turning left from the center lane rather than from the turn lane. "He is being counseled in an effort to correct his driving," Lt. Lannom said. "We're looking at correcting the driving habits of officers."
For the fire department, it's much more cut-and-dried, said Lt. Joel Lavender, a Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesman.
"We don't really have a lot of business running lights, period," Lt. Lavender said. "If you mess up and you're not on an emergency run, you get a ticket. They're subject to the same penalty, in addition to being punished by the fire department."
Quote:
The prevailing belief among officers has been that they can run red lights as they see fit.
Yea, there can be circumstances where running the light might be necessary, but there were 355 emergency vehicles identified as running the lights since mid Jan and they've already identified at least one guy who'll have to pay the ticket.
Keep an eye out folks. This should be interesting.
Carl
__________________
But what do I care? I got a growth on my pecker. -- Elvis
A four foot cop arrived wid a five foot gun. A cop that at one time must have been around 6'3" but was met at the bottom of a mountain by a flying, singing, writing weirdo freak.
-- Arlo Guthrie The Significance Of The Pickle
Posts: 352
Casino Cash: $1285
Sportbike: 07 FZ6 in Hot Sex Blue
The department I used to work for had this policy. If they where picked up by a camera they had to show they where on a priority call, or responding to one, or one had been issued that their response would be required to a lights/siren/red light running situation.
At all other times they are to obey the speed limit. Each priority has rules for what you can and can not do.
Our PD handles the red light camera's for our city and if a cruiser is caught running the light, they check to make sure he wasn't responding to a call or catching a violator. If neither of those exsist then they mail us the ticket at $140 and 2 pts. By catching a violator I mean witnessing something in front of you and SAFELY going through the intersection to make a stop.
BTW I agree with the policy. There is no excuse for not obeying the laws we enforce.
__________________
"The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who do not do anything about it."
(Albert Einstein)
Knee-leesta
LEO-leesta
"It is not how these officers died that made them heroes, it is how they lived." by Vivian Eney (survivor). Engraved on the National Police Memorial Wall.
I really don't know how i feel about red light cameras in general.
I'm pretty sure i hate them.
But if they are there, EVERYONE should have to watch out for them.
I think i can deal with red light cameras.... but speed cameras like they have in Europe? I'll pitch a fit if we start having to deal with THAT bullshit...
__________________
Moderator of Rider's Gear and Help me Fix it.
PM me if you have questions, concerns, or beer you need to give away.
+1^^ Ever watch mythbusters? They already did a show about them. And the cameras are a damn sight better than two cops in a VW van (first 'speed camera' I ever saw, Germany in the late 80's. All you see is the flashbulb, then a ticket comes in the mail!) They are fully automated, computer-driven affaires. I do agree that, while I don't like the idea of traffic cameras, I do think everyone should be treated the same.
The police in Mint Hill (near Charlotte) are some of the worst drivers on the road. I see them driving around without their headlights on (sometimes at night even), not using turn signals, speeding without their blue lights on, running lights randomly. I saw a guy doing about 85 in a 65 on the highway, no emergency lights, just flying 'cuz he can.
I'm glad to hear that some communities are expecting their police to obey the law. Now, if we could get the police to also enforce the traffic laws for these crazy-ass, speeding tow trucks. Ever see a tow truck getting a speeding ticket? I didnt think so.
__________________
"There comes a time in a man's life where he must spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and slit some throats"
Red Light Runners
Linear Mode
