Drivers who fight their cases in traffic court in Collier County, Florida are getting punished more harshly than motorists in other counties.

That’s what attorneys Mark Gold and Ted Hollander of The Ticket Clinic in West Palm Beach determined while traveling statewide representing motorists in traffic cases. And they’re accusing Collier County judges of conspiring to prejudge cases to whittle down their increased caseloads.

The dispositions grew even more severe after state budget cuts eliminated hearing officers, resulting in Collier County judges presiding over traffic cases beginning on April 1, adding to their caseloads.

The lawyers reviewed their cases and statewide statistics, determining that about 86 percent of those who contested their cases in Collier County were found guilty of speeding, compared with 5 percent statewide.

And 40 percent here were hit with license suspensions.

“That’s astronomical,” said Hollander, whose firm specializes in traffic tickets. “Nowhere do you see anything like that.”

Gold and Hollander said their clients also were being denied hardship licenses, which allow motorists to drive only to and from work.

They thought something unusual was going on, so they sought judges’ e-mails under the state public records law. They got 42. One provided insight.

An April 4 e-mail from County Judge Vince Murphy to all Collier County judges said he was writing to tell judges how he and Judge Eugene Turner handled cases that first day of traffic court. It referred to Hollander’s and Gold’s local co-counsel, Naples attorney Lee Carney, saying he set several cases for afternoon hearings to work out plea deals with law officers for withholds of adjudication. He urged judges not to accept deals once a case reaches hearing day.

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Ocala, Florida brings back the homeless cop speed trap.

Police in Ocala, Florida have brought back the practice of dressing up like the homeless in order to generate significant traffic ticket revenue. Sergeant Billy Woods, a white officer with a mustache, sat behind a cardboard sign in shabby clothes while wearing a Rastafarian cap and fake dreadlocks. The sign hid his radar gun and a radio used to summon a gaggle of chase officers hidden down the road at South Pine and Southeast 17th Street.A sting on Tuesday at an intersection where the speed limit had been temporarily lowered to 25 MPH resulted in 58 motorists being cited for at least one infraction, generally speeding. A few received an additional ticket for neglecting to wear a seatbelt. Ocala police are not concerned that their actions may be seen as insensitive to the plight of the less fortunate.

“If we can think of it, we’ll do it,” Sergeant Lou Biondi told the Ocala Star-Banner.

Police in other Florida cities such as Palm Beach have used the same tactics, even going as far as adopting military camouflage to hide their actions from the motoring public.

Source: (Ocala Star-Banner (FL), 8/31/2006)

Kenneth City, Florida Police issue $73 ticket to woman who attempted to slow traffic in the speed trap town.

An activist promoting slower driving in a notorious Florida speed trap town was ticketed for creating a safety hazard. Kali Gillespie, 68, hoped to slow drivers outside her 46th Avenue North home by distracting them with a flashing yellow light.

Kenneth City police issued a $200 ticket to Gillespie in November last year, but she turned the light back on after a judge dismissed the case. Police later confiscated the re-installed light and issued a $73.50 citation under state law prohibiting unauthorized traffic control devices.

Gillespie is now considering whether to fight the decision. She is known to complain about lax speed enforcement, even though the city has earned a reputation for its harsh treatment of drivers.

“Kenneth City cops will pull you over for two miles-per-hour over (the limit),” a motorist warns on the national Speed Trap Exchange website. “No mercy from these guys at all.”

Source: (St Petersburg Times (FL), 4/9/2007)

150 Drivers Ticketed In About 2 Hours

In Orange County, Florida, the problem isn’t dashing through the snow — It’s cars darting down the street at high speeds.

So, in mid-December, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office decided to do something about it by launching Operation ELF: Enforcing Limits and Fining speeders. Here’s how it worked: a sheriff’s deputy dressed as an elf clocked cars using a radar gun then dispatched a motorcycle deputy to pull them over and issue the driver a ticket.

More than 150 tickets were written in just over two hours one December afternoon. Some people said using a holiday icon to enforce the law didn’t seem right.

“That’s specifically why we didn’t use Santa Claus,” Ken Wyne of the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said. “We didn’t choose a nativity scene. We chose an elf. An elf is known for their impish behavior. If you’re going to speed in Orange County, you never know who’s going to be on the street corner.”

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office continues to use various disguises throughout the holiday seasons. Watch Out!