Comments on: Georgia City Rakes In $1,136 In Traffic Ticket Fines Per Resident

By: Somebody

Somebody — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 05:18:22 +0000

What do you expect? According to City of Duluth website 25% of their revenue is derived from police fines.

By: lisa cox

lisa cox — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 02:36:25 +0000

Dear Chief, I have the utmost respect for the badge. Having said that I have been working on a incredibly sad situation concerning what I consider more devious than any speed trap. It took me two days to figure out something was wrong and tried to make the Gov. heads aware of the unlawful actions that were taking place on a grand scale. I mean grand! That was almost two years ago and after 43 logged calls and 2 trips to the capitol…….I’ve decided to release months and months of research to the media. The information that I collected to prove the scheme could be understood by a child and yet they continue. When comparing state statistics retrieved from their own government web-sites the pattern becomes painfully obvious….I do appreciate officers and have cried at their funerals, but for the life of me I can’t understand why they don’t take a stand and say “hey this is wrong”

By: Phil Mckrackin

Phil Mckrackin — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 23:48:39 +0000

An entity that has a police department and only 491 residents would need a revenue source to pay the budget of the police department. I am assuming that the citations issued for violations of law were only to drivers who actually violated the respective section of law. The reason that the residents don’t revolt is because it is non residents who are being issue citations. The non residents who feel that they don’t need to obey the traffic regulations of some back woods little town with a population of only 491. Since the fines are collected from non residents the residents are happy because thier land taxes and sales taxes didn’t need to increase to cover the cost of the police departments budget.

I am surprised at this author’s assertions that traffic law violations and citations only lead to more traffic enforcement to build more revenue and that this is a cycle that can only be broken by anti-speed trap legislation. First off the $558,020 in fines is revenue from all traffic violations not just speeding. Secondly there is a much simpler way to combat the “speed trap” mentality. All a motorist needs to do is comply with the speed laws and other traffic laws in this town and viola revenue stream disappears and if the authors assertion that ticket revenue is the only support for the police department was correct the police department will disappear also. I somehow think that the police department will be funded whether that $558,020 in fines exists or not. I really can’t believe so many seemingly intelligent people buy into this classic example of NMA propaganda.

This is clearly a blatent attempt by the NMA to propose anti- speed trap legislation that it has drafted but can’t get support for. As I pointed out if a driver is as attentive as he should be while driving he will be aware of speed limit drops and if he is worried about being cited he will reduce his speed. I have no sympathy for a driver who passes a 30mph, 40mph, 50mph, 55mph sign and continues to proceed through the town at 70mph simply because he has been brain-washed by the NMA and feels entitled to be able to travel at that speed through town. Get a clue if it says 40mph then slow down to 40mph, I doubt you’ll get a citation for exceeding 40mph limit if you are doing 40mph.

Why do we need special legislation when all that is really needed is compliance to the law?

By: Jamie V

Jamie V — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 20:41:22 +0000

I received a citation in the City of Morrow for a late car tag. (13 days after my birthday) $192. I will think twice before entering that city to shop again.

By: Paul Black

Paul Black — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 17:37:48 +0000

I just got sacked with a $322.00 traffic ticket for speeding in a construction zone. I’m fed up. Is there any organization fighting this outrage?

By: Concerned Duluth GA Citzen

Concerned Duluth GA Citzen — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 18:25:04 +0000

The City Of Duluth, seems to be on a mission to trap every Duluth Citizen with oppressive, revenue generating, traffic stops. On June 13th my wife was coming home from and arduous business trip after having 3 flight delays and late arrival, is stopped for ” violation 40-8-31. This is a code that requires drivers to dim hi beams in approaching on comming traffic. At 2:00 AM there is no traffic at all much less in residential and poorly illuminated streets. This citation is petty, pathetic and wreaks of QUOTAS!

By: j jones

j jones — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 03:27:03 +0000

I went through stringtown, ok last year and theres a casino there on right where the officer was…needless to say i was pulled over, i had three beers that i drank in the car and my child with me. idiot i know. but what gave him the right to pull me over? and why did put in the report that he saw me swerve across the center line and he had to make a uturn? anyway, the officer said that i smelled of beer, i offered to take a breath test, he told me it was broken? anyone ever hear of that, he told me i had to take a blood test which i refused to the first time because of my fear of needles. then told him i would, he then said to late, brought the drug dogs, cuffed and stuffed me. and i was put in the tank for 15 hours…sometime in the middle of night he came in and wanted me to sign something. now i know it was videotaped, but my lawyer advised to plead deferred judgement and pay the 3000 plus in fines. if i had the resources i know that i could have won the case and the officer would surely of been suspended. so when your going through stringtown going back to dallas, be careful for this awfully corrupt system…by the way the judge i had appeared to have some mental dementia because during the trial he couldnt remember my name, case, things like that. so good luck everyone if you ever go through atoka co!

By: giles farmer

giles farmer — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 20:24:15 +0000

Its true! In Europe the government is way more law-abiding, less crime everywhere. The police there are not really the enemy, just civil servants and countrymen like everyone else.

Those “LEO” had a great suggestion- Abolish the Police. I vote yea 10x over.

See, they’re not so dumb after all…

By: J.Doe

J.Doe — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 04:16:30 +0000

Uggh

By: fornetti

fornetti — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 07:38:12 +0000

I do not believe this