Police interactions and red light cameras

There are many news stories lately about deadly interactions between police and the general public. Sometimes it is the police that end up getting shot. Sometimes it is the suspect or bystander who gets shot. The problem is direct contact between police and the public and the use of guns by both sides. How can we reduce the number of these interactions and still enforce the law?

One way is to use red light cameras. These are placed on corners where there are frequent crashes. They catch two common violations: red light runners and right turns on red without stopping. If a policeman were to try to catch these, he would have to hide nearby and rush into traffic to stop the violator. Then it would be the policeman's word against the driver's on whether the light was red when the driver went through.

The nice thing about red light cameras is no interruptions in traffic and positive proof of the infraction (there is a video of the event). A ticket simply arrives in the mail a few days later. It doesn't waste a policeman's time and it is entirely impartial. If you are hit by one of these red light runners, wouldn't you love to have a video of the event?

Yes, it may not reduce crashes if drivers now dutifully stop, but still don't look for pedestrians, bicycles and cars. But now we are at least eliminating a potentially dangerous confrontation between the police and the public in enforcing these laws.

Adelore Petrie

Arlington Heights