Traffic Tyranny in Fort Collins

On August 26th, Amy and I were driving home from some errand. We were waiting in the left turn lane just before 8pm. It was a double turn lane that normally stays green for a good while, it being part of one of the busier intersections in town. My office is located just west of this intersection, so I drive through this particular turn lane numerous times every week. We were only the third car in line. As I crossed the line, the light turned from green to yellow to red so ridiculously fast that we were still only partway through the turn. As it turned red, a bright flash caught my attention and blinded me for a split second. It all happened so fast that I slowed down, thinking the flash must have originated from emergency vehicles, explaining the light's strange and sudden turn to red. A few seconds later, I realized that I'd just been caught by Big Brother in the form of a red light camera.

I was infuriated- not only had I just been trapped by a machine that now gave the police context-less evidence against me, but it had unsafely distracted my vision while I was trying to safely drive home with my 8 1/2 month pregnant wife in the car. I immediately saw how this would likely play out. I'd receive the ticket in the mail, I'd contest it, the judge (or more likely the D.A.'s staffer) would hand me paperwork outlining a pre-determined plea, and finally I'd be charged "court fees" (my penalty for challenging the accusation) in addition to the original fine. I thought about writing a letter of complaint to the city that same night, but Amy was having contractions off and on and ended up going into labor the next morning, so my mind moved on to more meaningful things.

Sure enough, the citation arrived in the mail the following week. Included was a photo of our car in the intersection while the light was red. Not included, of course, was the photo that could have shown me crossing the line while the light was still green, nor the video clip that could show the unreasonably brief time the light took to turn from green to red. Impossible to document (but relevant nonetheless) is the way the camera flash disoriented me, however briefly, while I was trying to drive my wife and unborn baby home safely. My guilt is presumed and my defense will sound like an excuse. As my dad pointed out when I told him the story, this places the burden of proving innocence on me, the result of automated government harassment.

I may end up paying this fine, but you can bet I'll be contesting the entire situation.