Ashley Moody seeks to scuttle red-light camera case

Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office Tuesday asked the Florida Supreme Court to reject a case about whether a South Florida city’s red-light camera program violates state traffic laws.

Motorist Lee Stein went to the Supreme Court in September after the 3rd District Court of Appeal backed the city of Aventura in the dispute — one of numerous legal fights in recent years about red-light cameras in the state.

A panel of the South Florida appeals court in June overturned a Miami-Dade County judge’s ruling against the city.

The dispute stems from Stein receiving a citation for failing to stop at a red light in 2014 and focuses on guidelines used by Aventura in deciding whether to cite motorists based on camera images.

Aventura and other cities have different guidelines, leading Stein to argue, in part, that Aventura violated a state requirement of uniform traffic laws.

But in a 14-page brief Tuesday, Moody’s office argued that the Supreme Court should not take up the case. The brief said the appeals court’s decision did not conflict with any legal precedents in red-light camera cases.

“While the cases cited by the petitioner (Stein) are accurate for what they stand for, the petitioner mischaracterizes the 3rd DCA opinion as being in express and direct conflict with decisions by the Supreme Court,” the brief said.

“Contrary to the arguments made by the petitioner, there has not been a decision entered by the appellate court that conflicts with the rulings of other appellate courts or the Supreme Court.”

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Republished with permission from the News Service of Florida