A group has filed a lawsuit against the city of Chicago, claiming the ticketing system from red light and speed cameras is flawed and does not give drivers enough notice to avoid late fees and penalties.
The lawsuit, filed Monday in Cook County Circuit Court, says the city is mandated to send a second notice to violators who run a red light, but they fail to do so – making it impossible for motorists to avoid being penalized with further costs.
"Everyone knows that when you get something in the mail that is unusual, like a ticket or something, it sits on your dresser for four weeks or six weeks," attorney Jacie Zolna told the Chicago Tribune. "The ordinance specifically requires sending a second notice to allow people an opportunity to deal with it in some reasonable fashion before they're out of luck."
Zolna’s law firm, Myron M. Cherry and Associates LLC, is one of the two firms that filed the suit, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The Tribune reports that under the city’s municipal code, a driver is not liable for the ticket cost until a second notice is sent – and the group filing the suit claims they never received the second notice and were charged extra fines without a grace period to pay the original fees.
"It keeps adding up, and they can't pay and they're stuck with these threats over their head," Zolna said.
A spokesperson for the city of Chicago, John Holden, said in a statement to NBC Chicago that they are confident in the practices they enforce under the red light camera program.
Local
“The automated enforcement programs are about providing safety to residents in our neighborhoods," Holden said. "The plaintiffs’ main allegation appears to be that second notices of violation are not being sent, and this claim is false. Per Department of Finance strict and standard protocol, violators are sent two notifications prior to the final determination. Our investigations into plaintiffs’ remaining allegations show that they are also false. Therefore this complaint – like the previous one filed by this same attorney that was dismissed by the courts – should also be dismissed.”
