Ohio Federal Judge Says Speeder Cams Constitutional

A federal judge in Akron has rejected a local attorney’s claim that automatic traffic cameras violate the Constitution.

Lawyer Warner Mendenhall filed suit after his wife got a speeding ticket in November 2005 from a portable camera placed in an Akron school zone. Mendenhall argued that the city’s system was unfair and mostly driven by a desire to raise revenue through the fines.

Akron officials say the cameras were introduced in October 2005 after a 10-year-old boy was killed in a school crosswalk by a hit-and-run driver.

In the Dec. 10 ruling, U.S. District Court Judge David Dowd said the program respects citizens’ legal rights and is not unconstitutional.

Mendenhall says he’ll appeal to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati.