Red-light camera plan in Kane County on hold

Plans for Kane County's first red-light camera are on hold after Sheriff Pat Perez said he'll go back to the drawing board and select an intersection with a history of traffic problems that leaves no doubt his motive is to improve safety.

That doesn't mean the county board won't still have some tough questions for him when Perez returns with a new red-light plan. Kane County Board Chairman Karen McConnaughay peppered Perez with questions, setting the stage for debate about when writing tickets through red-light cameras just becomes over-policing.

Perez's initial plan was to place a red-light camera at the intersection of Orchard Road and I-88. Even in watching the videos of the intersection taken during a feasibility study, the vast majority of violations were turning on the red light without coming to a full stop.

McConnaughay suggested treating that turn as a yield or even putting a right-turn arrow at the intersection would be a better way to create safer turns than writing robotic tickets. Such tickets will inevitably be labeled a "cash cow," McConnaughay said.

Perez read letters expressing general support for the use of red-light cameras by Kane County's chief judge and state's attorney. Then he laid out his own rationale.

"I know that, no matter what, this is a touchy subject," Perez said. "The bottom line is it's against the law to run a red light, period. I would not risk or ruin our reputation as a sheriff's department by writing tickets that are nit-picky or ridiculous."

That sparked questions about what earns an intersection a dangerous label. Transportation division staff said earlier this week that the Orchard and I-88 intersection ranks 114th on their list. Perez said that's not a fair label because he's only talking about intersections in his policing jurisdiction, which only includes unincorporated areas of the county.

On that list, Orchard and I-88 would undoubtedly have a higher rank, but transportation staff still said there's only been eight accidents there in the past four years. Only one of those was related to running a red light. Given that history, McConnaughay asked the what the point was writing for tickets there, particularly for right turns.

"Because the law says you must come to a complete stop," Perez answered.

"I want to be careful that we're not doing this just to generate revenue," McConnaughay said.

That sent Perez back to the drawing board to find an intersection with a more dangerous history. There is no timetable for when he will return with a new plan.