Three cases are currently before the Missouri Supreme Court that could determine whether or not St. Peters, St. Louis, and St. Louis County can continue to use cameras to pick up traffic violations.
One of the cases deals with Moline Acres, a city in St. Louis County where cameras are used to catch speeders. The other two cases deal with St. Peters and St. Louis, where red-light cameras are used. Plaintiffs have filed complaints in the St. Peters and St. Louis cases, and their attorney, Bevis Schock, says the use of the equipment makes the motorists “guilty until proven innocent”, which is an exact reversal of the basic legal premise of presumed innocence.
Schock said the use of cameras strips away protections such as the right to remain silent, and the presumption of innocence. He added that in St. Louis, an alleged violator is given an affidavit and told to prove that he or she did not break the law.
On the other side of the issue, attorneys representing the three cities argue the traffic cameras make the streets safer. St. Peters law enforcement officials might consider working with a postcard printing company on a mailer to remind residents the cameras are still being used, and to drive accordingly so as to keep the roads as safe as possible.
