Missouri appeals court upholds red-light camera fines
Breaking Legal News - POSTED: 2011/10/25 11:57
Breaking Legal News - POSTED: 2011/10/25 11:57
A Missouri appeals court has upheld an ordinance in a suburban St. Louis city that imposes a $100 fine when cameras catch vehicles running red lights.
The Eastern District appeals court on Tuesday rejected an argument that the Creve Coeur ordinance violates due process rights by ticketing a vehicle's owner without knowing if the owner was driving when the vehicle ran a red light.
The appeals panel said the city's traffic-camera ordinance is similar to a parking ticket in that it is a civil penalty — not a criminal violation. The court said such tickets can be issued to the vehicle owner without regard to who was driving the vehicle.