Unapproved Radar Guns Could Mean Ticket Refunds For Thousands Of Florida Drivers

OFF THE WIRE
by Asa Jay

If you got a speeding ticket in Florida in the past ten years, there's a good chance you are due a refund, since they've been using improper radar guns. Of course, the revenue generators are none too happy about this turn of events:
"My first concern was what about if we have to refund all this money?" Comptroller Linda Doggett said. "They look at that revenue as the main source for funding clerks and court related functions and many other trust funds in state and local agencies."
Read the full story on CopBlock.org: http://cpblck.me/125582

Some drivers ticketed for speeding in Florida may be able to have their tickets refunded or dismissed after a local news investigation revealed that a number of sheriff�s departments and police stations across the state are using a radar gun not approved because of its inaccuracy.
In Orlando, police officials confirmed that the department has 36 of the guns in daily use as utilized by patrol cars, airport units, and tactical units.
The radar gun in question, the Python II, shoots at an angle of 15 degrees. Florida�s State Administration code stipulates however, that guns cannot shoot at an angle greater than 12 degrees as the wider range increases the possibility of hitting multiple cars at once attributing wrong speeds to different cars.
�This is going to cause significant problems for the Orlando Police Department, and for prosecuting cases going forward,� attorney Matt Morgan said. �You will see some of the cases resurrected from the dead. You will have people come forward and challenge tickets they got in the past, claiming the �gun was defective,� and their case should be overturned.�
The news investigation discovered that for over at least the last 10 years, the Lee County Sheriff�s Office alone has issued up to 52,000 speeding tickets. Sources with direct knowledge of the situation say most of those resulted from the Python II.
Lee County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller Linda Doggett was surprisingly candid about the situation.
�My first concern was what about if we have to refund all this money?� Doggett said. �They look at that revenue as the main source for funding clerks and court related functions and many other trust funds in state and local agencies.�
In response to the revelation, Fort Myers attorney Sawyer Smith has already filed a federal class action lawsuit.
�The sky�s the limit with this case. I assure you it�s going to be broad, Smith said. �This is just the beginning. We have launched a website, PythonII.com, that allows a ticketed driver to submit some basic information that will allow us to evaluate whether they have the potential to be in this class.�
Lee County Sheriff Mike Scott said Tuesday that the bad radar guns were taken off the streets in January, but had been used since 2004.