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Judge Blocks Restrictions On Dayton's Red Light Camera Program

traffic camera red light camera
Robert Couse-Baker
/
Flickr/Creative Commons

Dayton officials say the city’s red light camera program will continue after a Lucas County judge blocked new state restrictions from taking effect. Under a provision in the Ohio transportation budget Gov. Mike DeWine signed into law back in April, the restrictions were set to begin Wednesday.

Under the state transportation budget restrictions, cities that use red-light traffic cameras would have to report revenues generated by the cameras. The state would then deduct that amount from their state aid.

The law would also require red-light-camera tickets to be processed in municipal court instead of through an administrative hearing process.

The city of Toledo asked a judge to block these and other restrictions, arguing they’d cost too much and require additional staff.

In a decision issued June 28, Lucas County Common Pleas Court Judge Myron Duhart found Toledo would be “irreparably harmed” by the state's new restrictions.

Now, the judge’s injunction means Ohio cities’ red light camera programs can continue.

Dayton City Attorney Barbara Doseck says the city is weighing its legal options as Toledo’s case makes its way through the courts.

Dayton reported nearly $2 million in revenue from its camera program last year.

Jess Mador comes to WYSO from Knoxville NPR-station WUOT, where she created an interactive multimedia health storytelling project called TruckBeat, one of 15 projects around the country participating in AIR's Localore: #Finding America initiative. Before TruckBeat, Jess was an independent public radio journalist based in Minneapolis. She’s also worked as a staff reporter and producer at Minnesota Public Radio in the Twin Cities, and produced audio, video and web stories for a variety of other news outlets, including NPR News, APM, and PBS television stations. She has a Master's degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in New York. She loves making documentaries and telling stories at the intersection of journalism, digital and social media.