If you live in NSW this could help you.
ref: www.smh.com.au
Speeding fines may come to sudden halt
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Edmund Tadros
August 24, 2006
EVERY speed camera fine issued by the Roads and Traffic Authority since 1999 may be invalid, after a judge ruled the photos used to convict drivers were meaningless.
The decision in the Sydney District Court by Judge John Nicholson, SC, could cost the State Government hundreds of millions of dollars, said Dennis Miralis, the solicitor who won the case.
The authority had sought to convict his client, David Baldock, of Castlecrag, of driving at 93kmh in an 80kmh zone on the M5 at Bardwell Park in June last year, Mr Miralis said. But Judge Nicholson ruled that the photograph provided by the authority was not valid evidence.
He found that to be given weight as evidence the digital cameras that took the photos had to be calibrated every day. The authority calibrated its cameras once a year, Mr Miralis said.
He said every person convicted on such evidence since 1999 - when digital cameras came in - had been improperly convicted.
"The biggest problem the RTA face is how they're going to run these prosecutions in the future," Mr Miralis said.
He said he would ask the Attorney-General's department to hold an inquiry into how the authority's lawyers had conducted their court cases.
The authority said its cameras were accurate and denied the court's decision had set a precedent. Every camera was subject to "comprehensive" tests, a spokesman said. The authority would consider an appeal.
In March Mr Miralis won an appeal in the Supreme Court against the authority over a speed camera photo that did not have the proper "security indicators". The court overturned his client's $75 fine.
In February the authority lost another appeal when the Supreme Court said a speed camera fine had wrongly stipulated which lane the motorist was using.
There are 113 fixed speed cameras in NSW. Last year $57.3 million worth of speed camera fines were issued, up from $50.9 million in 2004 and $41.6 million in 2003.
Donating Member
wasnt there some thing on the news a while ago about the speed cameras reading false speeds, i remember they clocked a brick wall going 8km/h!!
lol maybe in a tornado if it didnt fall apart first
~~Nic~ says:
yeah feel dick tho
Moderator Puppeh
if only it was the case in canberra... i would get my point and 110 bucks back!
i also heard on the radio that the RTA said that there will not be any other refunds, this was a one off case and if anyone else wishes to dispute it they will have to go to court
and theres the money shot
doesnt it just suck twice as bad when you see it yourself and think ahh f***
~~Nic~ says:
yeah feel dick tho
Originally Posted by Troy711
if only it was the case in canberra... i would get my point and 110 bucks back!
i also heard on the radio that the RTA said that there will not be any other refunds, this was a one off case and if anyone else wishes to dispute it they will have to go to court
That's one very nice ute man. Well they say it wont set a precident but if you are smart enough it will. Even in another state you could say that it was incorrect based on case blah blah blah
Moderator Puppeh
i reckon the one i got done by is wrong. i know exactly where the camera is and i always triple check my speed before going near it. ill always do under 80 (usually 75) just to make sure im safe. i have no idea why this one time i got busted. i think its cos it was wrong, but i cant argue it. they will just say that its my fault.
besides, i copped it sweet, paid the fine and lost the points. shit happens..
sneaky bastards catching you from behind i feel glad we dont have (yet) cams that catch you from behind or permanent roadside speed cams in perth, just the odd permanent redlight camera although some are apparently blank boxes with nothing in them and the portable roadside speed cams that catch you from the front
im buying a nice big angle grinder this weekend, anyone wanna join me
i have an idea that its because you were speeding
im buying a nice big angle grinder this weekend, anyone wanna join me
Not when you hit the power line..... No thanks. Gas axe would be a better approach,
Moderator Puppeh
yes true. perhaps i slipped once, but i doubt iti have an idea that its because you were speeding
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