Mayor White really, really wants red light cameras
According to this Chronicle story, Mayor White says he will not give up the fight for red light cameras even if the state Senate passes the bill closing a loophole that would allow the city to use the cameras:
White said he believes the city may have the authority to use red-light cameras despite Thursday's House vote.
[snip]
Houston City Attorney Arturo Michel said state law does not preclude municipalities from using cameras to issue criminal citations.
White said that may be an option, but acknowledged it would be difficult.
Under Texas law, running a red light is a Class C misdemeanor that can be regulated only by the state, even though local governments are in charge of enforcement.
Drivers who run red lights would have to be identified to issue criminal citations, but intersection cameras typically photograph license plates and don't clearly show the driver.
I don't know. The Legislature seems firmly against cameras. If the city can come up with another way to do it, my guess is the Legislature would tackle the issue again.
Then the mayor gives us a little pro-camera spin:
"I think the public overwhelmingly wants us to use the technology," White said after a lopsided vote in the House to ban camera enforcement.
I didn't know the city had done some polling on the issue. I would love to see the poll particulars, and not the mayor's interpretation of the results.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 02/25/05 12:42 PM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Sphere | Comments (5)
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