2/16/2005
UK Court Finds Long-Range Speed Camera InaccurateUK judge throws out ProLaser speed camera evidence after man charged with driving 25 MPH above his car's top speed.
A Scottish man charged with a 132 MPH speed camera violation was vindicated in a UK court after evidence showed his Subaru's top speed to be only 107 MPH.
The court decision forced the UK government on Wednesday to begin reviewing its use of long-range speed camera devices, and could result in cancellation of numerous prior convictions where the ProLaser III device was used as evidence. The device was type approved in the UK in 2002.
This hand-held lidar gun is equipped with a video recorder and has been touted as being "more reliable" than traditional radar devices. It boasts a range of 2000 meters, as much as four times greater than that of traditional radar guns.
The ProLaser is also used in the United States, most notoriously in a Florida speed trap where police disguised themselves in the back of a beat-up pickup truck to issue nearly 3,000 citations in just three days.
Article Excerpt:
"My client's car could not do more than 107mph yet the ProLaser III gave a reading of 132mph. It recorded something that cannot possibly have happened. Therefore it is not a reliable machine."Source: Long-range speed cameras unreliable, says judge (London Telegraph (UK), 2/17/2005)
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