TheNewspaper.com Roundup: May 16, 2012

Each Wednesday, we’ll publish quick summaries of the articles from the last week on TheNewspaper.com. We’re doing this because these articles are often strongly connected to the issues that National Motorists Association members are interested in.

Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Oklahoma Speed Trap Town Cheats Motorists, Refuses Refunds
Bernice, Oklahoma trustees voted Monday not to refund illegally collected speeding ticket fines. The notorious Northeast speed trap town of just 500 residents was busted last month by the Oklahoma State Auditor and Inspector for charging up to $545 for a single traffic ticket when it could only legally collect $50.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Tennessee: Federal Lawsuit Takes on Automated Justice
A group of motorists have launched a challenge to the Bluff City, Tennessee speed camera program. The class action suit was transferred to the US District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee earlier this month. It alleges that not only is the ticketing automated but the adjudication process is as well.

Monday, May 14, 2012
Federal Courts Split on Forgiving Police Use of GPS Evidence
The US Supreme Court in January laid down the final verdict that police may not install GPS tracking devices on automobiles without the sanction of a warrant signed by an independent magistrate. The issue remains far from settled, however. Two federal district courts last week issued contradictory rulings over whether police could get away with the results of warrantless GPS surveillance conducted prior to the US v. Jones ruling.

Sunday, May 13, 2012
Italy, Poland: Vigilantes Express Displeasure with Automated Enforcement
Vigilantes spraypainted a newly installed speed cameras in Gallarate, Italy this week. Four cameras located along the Viale Lombardia had lens openings carefully covered in blue paint, Varese News reported.

Friday, May 11, 2012
Arizona Governor Sides with Traffic Camera Companies
Governor Jan Brewer (R) on Wednesday vetoed a measure that would have brought Arizona’s definition of an intersection into compliance with federal law. In her veto message, Brewer said it would be too dangerous to adopt the same legal standard implemented across forty-eight other states.

Thursday, May 10, 2012
State, Feds Bust Cops for Faking Overtime Requests
Police officers around the country are being caught fudging citation statistics in order to boost their take-home pay. On Tuesday, the King County, Washington Prosecuting Attorney filed charges against recently retired Lieutenant William B. Gardiner alleging the 25-year veteran lied about his overtime to pad his salary up to $163,000 in 2010.

You deserve every speeding ticket you get. You can complain all you want after the fact, but it's true. Find out why.

It's one of the "great" American past times: complaining about unfair speeding tickets. There are two types of people when it comes to complaining about this particular type of traffic ticket. Which group are you in?

7 Stories of Speed Trap Revenge: These drivers didn't let the authorities get away with their corrupt traffic enforcement practices. See how the little guys fought back.

This collection of stories will definitely entertain you, but make sure you don't buy into the underlying message. Find out the dangerous myth that these stories perpetuate.

3 dirty tricks that the ticket camera industry uses to steal money from safe drivers. Discover what you don't know.

Despite years of evidence showing that ticket camera companies don't care about safety and will do anything for a buck, there are few tricks that the average driver often fails to notice. You can help expose them.