Update

I think I may have touched a nerve. I'm finding that I'm not alone in my frustration with Glendale and the other cities that support the red light cameras. Since Saturday:

1) Boycott Glendale Facebook group has 52 members. The support has been amazing!
2) I have an invitation to be on The Worst Show on The Web radio program from host, Kurtis Bedford.
3)I have evidence that may dismiss my ticket.
4)Received an email from Charles Walter of the National Motorists Association in support of our cause. There's lots of great information on their site. You can find them at: www.motorists.org
5) A few of you are following my blog!! YAY!

And Now:

THE EVIDENCE!!
I discovered that most states require photo enforcement notification signs at least 300 feet prior to the intersection. Here are the pictures of the sign posted prior to the intersection of San Los Feliz and San Fernando. The signs are obstructed by over-grown trees. Bless those trees!

Not that I'm really that paranoid but I think it's best to print these pictures and mail them to myself just in case they trim those trees or doubt the validity of them. What do you think??




















Other than that, I timed some of the yellow lights in the area. The intersection at Los Feliz and San Fernando yellow light is slightly faster than the surrounding intersections. Glendale in general has faster yellow lights, faster than neighboring Burbank that allows a whole 4 seconds to negotiate the intersection. Imagine! I'll post the video once I put it together. It's not rock solid evidence but it does show a subtle kind of entrapment.

More than just the issue of my own personal citation I feel it is necessary to continue probing into this matter. Yes, I said 'probing'. It's important to fight this invasion of privacy and fascist policing of good citizens. I will have to pay my ransom of $529 before I even get to state my case.

This infers that I am guilty until proven innocent. What is this? An electronics store?

This is what oblivious looks like. Caught on camera. I had just purchased a Father's Day gift for my husband and was off to the drug store to pick up a few items on the corner of Los Feliz and San Fernando in Los Angeles's bastard child town of Glendale.

I had a choice that day. Do I drive to Pasadena or to Glendale? My thinking was like this: I could go to the Best Buy on Los Feliz. I knew there was a drug store a few blocks away where I could pick up the few items I needed. So Glendale it was.

As I approached the intersection of San Fernando and Los Feliz, the light turned yellow. I had a few moments to decide whether or not I could make the turn before the light turned red. I thought I could make it. It seemed feasible at the time.

Three seconds, maybe less. That's what you get. In that small purgatorial time between green and red, I had the time to evaluate an important question: To go or not to go? It's simple. Do I slam on my brakes or drive through the light? We make decisions like this everyday. I had no idea how much that small decision could potentially cost me.

It's a good thing that I'm not followed by cameras 24/7. At least not yet. Then I could show you what anger looks like. It's not pretty. When my husband showed my the citation that arrived in the mail yesterday, it wasn't pretty. I experienced a whole range of emotions. First, confusion, then bewilderment and a few others that eventually led me directly to feelings of betrayal and then ultimately anger.

Anger. A most powerful emotion, one I try to avoid. Yet anger does provide us with a few gifts. Anger can lead one to action. Anger can be that friend that tells me to get off my ass and take a stand, do something!

Evidently according to the citation I received, at .43 seconds into the red light I had committed my crime. I had made the decision to drive through the yellow and cross over into the land of red. There was no friendly officer there to point out my poor judgment and ask me to be more careful. Just a quick flash that acted as judge and jury slamming me with a $529 fine a nasty point on my DMV record. My permanent record.

I find this a most unfriendly way to treat consumers. I had just spent $200+ on gift and sundries. Traffic court requires you to pay the fine even if you contest it. You are guilty until proven innocent. Then on top of all of this we being monitored by an outside company that benefits from your misfortune.

Is it possible that all of this is done in the name of safety? Well, that's what they say. Yet at most of these camera points the yellow light time has been adjusted to give us less time to react. It's been proven to cause more accidents and of course more citations, which means more money for a few lucky ones.

So I'd like to invite you all to join me on the journey of getting to the bottom of all of this. I have until August 9, 2010 to decide if I'll contest this ticket. I hope to examine the crime scene myself, see if there are any loopholes surrounding my own ticket and most importantly let the city officials of Glendale know that this is not an acceptable way to treat people.

So for now the first order of business is to:
BOYCOTT GLENDALE