# Contesting a speeding ticket from a camera rather than an in-person stop **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 1, 2025, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745 "2025-05-01T10:38:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Mike\_Mabes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mike_mabes/32/1782_2.png) [@Mike\_Mabes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike_Mabes)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2026, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/41 "2026-02-09T04:59:55Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > That’s my wife’s philosophy about driving or parking infractions. It’s more often successful than not. It may happen again. Got another camera ticket back in August. For this one, by a strict reading of the law I was in violation. I was at a stop sign with a car in front of me, we were both turning right. After the car ahead of me went forward I did as well, looking to my left, it is a college town and there are always students (and even faculty) who don’t look up when they are in the crosswalk. Once i had made the right turn, I was right beside a school bus on the other side of the street. I would never have remembered this until I saw the video footage when I got the ticket. The bus had just stopped as I turned and the Stop signs were out, but there had not been enough time for the students to start getting out of the bus. I waited until 2 days before the ticket was due to request a court hearing. Still waiting. Have called a couple of times to check and see if a day was scheduled. As of last week, none. If/when I get one, if I have the time to go to court I think I could get it removed or reduced, but if I lose the case it goes on my driving record. Not going to take that chance. If I do get a court date, will see if I can postpone it. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2026, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/42 "2026-02-09T05:22:37Z")
> [@Mike\_Mabes](#): > > but if I lose the case it goes on my driving record. I thought camera tickets don’t go on your driving record. ---
**Author:** ![Mike\_Mabes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mike_mabes/32/1782_2.png) [@Mike\_Mabes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike_Mabes)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2026, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/43 "2026-02-09T05:25:19Z")
they don’t unless you contest in court, with a police officer there. At least that is how it is in Virginia. Or maybe the phone rep I talked to was misinformed or I misunderstood ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2026, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/44 "2026-02-09T05:26:49Z")
> [@Mike\_Mabes](#): > > Or maybe the phone rep I talked to was misinformed or I misunderstood They’re probably correct if that’s what they said. ---
**Author:** ![Mike\_Mabes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mike_mabes/32/1782_2.png) [@Mike\_Mabes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike_Mabes)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2026, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/45 "2026-02-09T05:28:23Z")
Just looked it up, for school bus violations, it may be ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2026, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/46 "2026-02-09T12:20:09Z")
> [@Mike\_Mabes](#): > > > [@hogarth](#): > > > > That’s my wife’s philosophy about driving or parking infractions. It’s more often successful than not. > > It may happen again. Got another camera ticket back in August. By the way, since this topic first started I got my first speed camera ticket (in the brief period where Toronto had speed cameras) for going 52 kph in a 40 kph school zone. My wife is challenging it, of course. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2026, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/47 "2026-02-09T13:33:58Z")
I wonder how that works - the reason that camera tickets don’t generally go on your driving record is that there is generally no way to prove who’s driving. You can tell who the car is registered to , but lots of people drive cars that belong to other people. ( And I don’t mean just borrowed - my husband has never driven a car registered to him - for convenience, I’ve always owned our cars.) ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2026, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/48 "2026-02-09T14:22:46Z")
> [@doreen](#): > > I wonder how that works - the reason that camera tickets don’t generally go on your driving record is that there is generally no way to prove who’s driving. You can tell who the car is registered to , but lots of people drive cars that belong to other people. I was thinking that myself, unless somehow they think the person going to court was the driver. In that case, what if you hire a lawyer; the owner / driver shouldn’t need to show up if they are represented. ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2026, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/49 "2026-02-16T18:44:56Z")
Here you are required to state who was driving at the time the offence was committed, and refusal to answer is an offence in itself. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2026, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/50 "2026-02-16T19:08:51Z")
Wouldn’t that go against the 5th amendment right against self-incrimination? ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2026, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/51 "2026-02-16T19:12:29Z")
It’s not a crime. It’s a civil infraction. It doesn’t go on your driving record so it’s more like a parking ticket. That may be the difference. At least that’s what Dr. Google tells me. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2026, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/52 "2026-02-16T19:17:42Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > It’s not a crime. It’s a civil infraction. I believe that answer varies by state & that it _is_ a crime in some states. Admittedly don’t know where **Mk\_VII** lives. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2026, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/53 "2026-02-16T19:32:31Z")
It’s a good question. I bet that if it’s a crime in a State, they can’t do that. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2026, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/54 "2026-02-16T21:36:02Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > > [@hajario](#): > > > > It’s not a crime. It’s a civil infraction. > > I believe that answer varies by state & that it _is_ a crime in some states. Admittedly don’t know where **Mk\_VII** lives. His profile says “England”. So the US Fifth Amendment is not applicable. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2026, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/55 "2026-02-16T21:38:42Z")
As to the civil infraction stuff, the fifth can pretty easily be gotten around by the government. e.g. “You’re welcome to choose not to tell us who’s driving. At which point we’ll cancel the car’s registration for non-compliance with statute 123.456a. Have a nice day. And don’t be driving on dead plates; we’ll get you for that too.” ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2026, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/56 "2026-04-20T13:21:41Z")
A post was merged into an existing topic: [Llamadrama posts (Trock)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/llamadrama-posts-trock/1029424/35) ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2026, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/57 "2026-02-16T22:47:16Z")
Welcome stranger! We’re glad to see a new face. > [@On another topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1029424/35): > > FTR. Yes, I have violated traffic and parking laws. As have we all. I agree much of the outrage aimed at red light cameras is misplaced. Just another variation on the age-old theme of Americans. “It’s unfair” is really just sugar coated codewords for “It doesn’t work to my advantage.” Then again, I don’t think we really want to go too far down into automated traffic enforcement. Every modern car logs everything you do. And could send that directly to Big Brother. Hit 26 in a 25 zone? Citation! Still doing it 10 seconds later? Second citation! Admittedly that’s kinda worst case. But it’d be trivially easy to accomplish technologically and if there’s one thing an authoritarian leaning government wants, it’s to have everybody always being guilty of something. Being able to hold the fear of sorta-legit police action over the head of every citizen is their dream set-up. A complaint legislature and court system could wave these sorts of evil processes into place with nary a hiccup. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2026, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/59 "2026-02-16T23:27:17Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Then again, I don’t think we really want to go too far down into automated traffic enforcement. Every modern car logs everything you do. And could send that directly to Big Brother. Hit 26 in a 25 zone? Citation! Still doing it 10 seconds later? Second citation! I don’t disagree about that - but that’s not the reason people object to camera tickets. If it was, few people would be using apps/devices that report to their insurance company Some do it unintentionally , by using Gas Buddy or an app that tracks family members and not opting out of selling information but others do it intentionally , by downloading an app or installing a device or answering “yes” when an insurance company asks if you want a personalized rate based on your driving behavior, Nope, people mostly object to camera tickets because they feel like they should get away with it if there wasn’t a cop right there to ticket them for the red light/speeding/bus lane or bus stop violations. ( My city now has cameras on at least some buses for tickets involving bus s top or lanes.) ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2026, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/60 "2026-02-17T06:00:56Z")
> [@On another topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1029424/35): > > But if there have been some instances of red light cameras being manipulated, and I think that’s true, that doesn’t justify everyone complaining that a red light camera legitimately caught them blowing through a red light. You’re contradicting yourself. If the red light camera was manipulated, sometimes by making the yellow shorter than it should be (for which there were documented examples) then the majority of people getting caught at that light really weren’t guilty. I can’t tell you how many times I saw the (now disbanded) red light cams near her house flash when I was sitting at a light; sometimes there was no on in the intersection while other times had multiple cars there because the light was **green**. I don’t know if they issued tickets from those inappropriate flashes that I saw or not but I do know if I ever got a ticket there I was going to go out with a GoPro for a few mins & play that in court as to all the times it flashed inappropriately that it couldn’t possibly be working properly. > [@On another topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1029424/35): > > “Parking Wars” was a reality show focused on parking violations and the hard working city employees enforcing those laws. I think 95% of the violators claimed innocence. The biggest difference between the Gestapo & the PPA was the ~~hard working city employees~~ Ha! [patronage hacks](https://billypenn.com/2022/10/03/philadelphia-parking-authority-history-patronage-politics-tickets/) wear blue shirts. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2026, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745/61 "2026-02-17T07:05:25Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > I don’t know if they issued tickets from those inappropriate flashes that I saw or not You get sent a photo and/or web link to a video of your car and the infraction as it occured - you watch yourself driving through a red light. If it doesn’t show on-camera, there’s no verification of an offense, so no ticket. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contesting-a-speeding-ticket-from-a-camera-rather-than-an-in-person-stop/1017745.md?page=4)