EDITORIAL
Purge van camera tickets from state courts

Officially, the state traffic camera program is dead. Yet thousands of van cam citations issued before the law was repealed on April 30 are still grinding through the judicial machinery in what appears to be a futile and time-squandering exercise.

Frazzled motorists are showing up at their appointed hearings to contest their van cam tickets. Meanwhile, judges are using their discretion either to throw out all tickets at a hearing or forgive petty speeders.

At a recent hearing, for example, a district judge summarily dismissed the van cam citations of anyone who was nabbed for going no faster than 9 mph above the posted limit. All others, he said, could either pay the fine or request a trial.

However, those opting for a trial can expect the city prosecutor's office to drop their case. It turns out, there isn't sufficient evidence to pursue van cam cases since a district judge ruled that the state could not legally "presume" a registered owner of a cited vehicle was also the driver.

So why the charade?

Attorney Michael Kam, a vocal critic of the traffic camera program, says this posthumous pursuit of van cam victims is a waste of time.

"This is something that could be shortcircuited," Kam said. He suggests Gov. Ben Cayetano or the chief justice find a means to order the blanket dismissal of all traffic camera citations.

The judiciary contends it's playing strictly by the rules because the law to repeal the program does not affect outstanding citations, penalties or proceedings. Besides, they say, it's not up to the court to make blanket decisions on how to handle the tickets.

It's true that this mess wasn't created by the Judiciary. But what about the district judge who dismissed all traffic camera cases scheduled for a civil hearing one day last month without explanation? Can't that discretion be extended to all outstanding citations?

Surely there's a more dignified way to put this ill-fated program to rest without wasting taxpayer dollars and the time of overwhelmed court personnel.