SANTA ANA Police here have resumed issuing citations and fines to red-light runners caught on tape, after a month of writing nothing but warnings to clear up legal questions about the municipality’s camera system.
The city quietly established a temporary grace period for all of its red-light cameras late last month. It was meant to address what had become a common line of defense from people caught running red on tape: that the city had failed to give proper notice that cameras were in use.
An Orange County court commissioner had dismissed dozens of red-light tickets from Santa Ana because of that. City officials decided to give a 30-day warning period for each of its 20 red-light camera installations, rather than continue fighting its case in court.
That warning period expired this week, and Cmdr. Tammy Franks said police are once again issuing citations and fines for red-light violations caught on camera. She said a final tally of how many red-light runners were given warnings, rather than fines, was not yet available.
But the city’s network of red-light cameras generates an average of around 1,500 tickets every month.
That network, operated by a private company under contract with the city, began in 2003 and now watches over the 20 locations. That makes it the largest red-light camera network in Orange County.
The law requires the city to give a 30-day warning before it starts using red-light cameras. The city gave such a warning in 2003, when it put up its first camera, and has argued ever since that the one warning also covered all subsequent cameras it installed.
But red-light runners have challenged their tickets in court, arguing that the law requires Santa Ana to give a new warning every time it sets up a new camera. And, in recent months, the court commissioner who handles Santa Ana’s red-light tickets had agreed with them.
The city still thinks its interpretation was correct, City Attorney Joseph Fletcher said last month – that a one-time blanket warning was all the notice the law requires. But the city decided it would take too long to fight that battle through the courts.
The city issued a new warning late last month, in the form of a small classified ad in the Orange County Register. That started the 30-day warning period, which ran out one minute after midnight on Monday.
And, if you’re wondering: A red-light ticket runs around $450, including penalties, assessments and court fees.
