Fighting the long arm (or electric eye) of the Law

Let me begin by saying that I have a particularly good driving record. I have been ticketed exactly twice in the 20 years that I have been a licensed driver. Once for failure to control and once for speeding. Both offenses occurring more than 15 years ago. So imagine my surprise when I opened the mail two weeks ago to discover that I had been busted by the big brother traffic camera for running a red light. I looked carefully at the location of the alleged offense and recognized the left turn lane on Walnut St. headed into the shopping center near Target. Since I rarely go there I remembered the occasion clearly. I do remember going through that intersection, turning left on a clearly YELLOW turn arrow. Well, the thought of paying a ticket by sending money to Cleveland, Ohio and not to town hall seemed very unsavory. Also, I was sure that if an actual police officer had stopped me, he or she would have asked me to be more careful next time and to have a nice day.

I was not going down without a fight. I decided to have my say before the law about this camera cop. It's an easy enough procedure. I called the phone number and left a message that I was going to request a hearing. Today, the officer in charge of things called me back and said that the charges had been dismissed because on review it was impossible to see the actual color of the traffic light as I passed under it and they would not be able to prove that I had in fact run a red light, which I had not. So the lesson is, don't be afraid to stand up for yourself and don't pay a ticket you get through the mail without at least asking to be heard by an actual human being. Hurray for me, no ticket to pay and nothing on my record!!!!