Article from: www.thenewspaper.com/news/16/1654.asp

3/16/2007

Iowa: Third Judge Finds Camera Tickets Illegal
A judge declares Clive, Iowa red light tickets illegal following the rulings of two other Iowa county judges.

Another court in Iowa has struck down red light camera tickets as illegal. Dallas County Magistrate Misheal Waller ruled this week that the city of Clive's photo tickets violated state laws requiring a valid citation to include the defendant's address as well as the time and place of a court appearance.

Magistrate Waller intentionally made his ruling on grounds separate from two recent cases in Scott County. One judge in January (view ruling) and another in December (view ruling) struck down Davenport's red light camera fines because the city's ordinance conflicted with state law defining red light running as a criminal, not civil, violation.

Magistrate Waller found Waukee Police Officer William Daggett, who represented himself in court, not guilty and dismissed all charges against him.

"I happen to be a little more knowledgeable than the average citizen about this," Daggett told the Des Moines Register newspaper. "Any attorney could have done the same thing."

Clive officials refuse to refund thousands of illegally issued citations that have already been paid. The city will attempt to modify the tickets so that they can continue operating the system.

Source: Clive stoplight citations dismissed (Des Moines Register (IA), 3/15/2007)

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