Autoblog

Professor beats traffic ticket with physics paper

Zach Bowman — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 08:01:00 EST

We've never been falsely accused of a traffic violation, having earned every last second of our time before a judge, but when it does happen to us, we'll certainly want to brush up on our physics. Dmitiri Krioukov, a physicist with the University of California, recently pleaded his way out of a fine for rolling through a stop sign using the power of mathematics. Krioukov worked up a four-page physics paper underscoring the differences between linear and angular motion to prove that he could have theoretically come to a complete stop and resumed traveling in the time it took another vehicle to pass between him and the citing officer.

The idea is that perception of speed can be altered depending on one's viewpoint. Since the officer viewed Krioukov from the side and the physicist supposedly came to a complete stop very quickly before accelerating again just as fast, it appeared as if he never stopped at all. Or at least that was the notion. Whether or not the judge believed the professor didn't matter so much as the fact that Krioukov managed to shed some doubt on the accusation. He was declared innocent and spared the $400 fine.

But the story doesn't end there. The physicist left a flaw in his proof, and has invited everyone to see if they can figure it out. From our layman's point of view, it appears Krioukov's Toyota Yaris managed to fall from 22 mph to 0 and vault back up to 22 in the span of three seconds. Must be quite the machine. You can check out the full paper here.

Professor beats traffic ticket with physics paper originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 17 Apr 2012 08:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: LA police officers who alleged ticket quota system win $2M judgment

Chris Shunk — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 14:01:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Government/Legal, Safety

For the average motorist, dealing with law enforcement usually amounts trying to get out of a traffic citation. So it's understandable that we sometimes are less than thrilled to see them on our roads. But keep in mind that the police are the first responders whenever there is trouble, and the men and women in blue are looking out for our best interests more than many of us realize.

Case in point? Los Angeles police officers Howard Chan and David Benioff sued the city for instituting a ticket quota system (we knew it!). According to the Los Angeles Times, the officers alleged that they were instructed to write up 18 tickets each per shift. And not just any ticket - we're talking high-dollar offenses like blowing stop signs and other major moving violations.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the officers won their civil case by an 11-1 vote and were awarded a $2 million judgment due to a loss of reputation and work actions that resulted from the officers' refusal to meet that quota. Gregory Smith, Benioff's lawyer, says that he hopes the decision helps eradicate quotas, adding that the practice is "a direct violation of the vehicle code and this case was about these officers being asked to break the law."

The city's defense was that the department had broad goals for tickets, but only to improve safety and decrease fatalities. Former LAPD Commander Paul Kim tells a different story, testifying that weather, paramedic response times and the price of gas were more likely more significant reasons for traffic deaths. Hat tip to Bo!

[Source: Los Angeles Times | Image: Corbis]

Report: LA police officers who alleged ticket quota system win $2M judgment originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 12 Apr 2011 14:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NYT: India's police turning to Facebook to catch bad drivers

Zach Bowman — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 08:57:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Technology, India

It looks like drivers should be less concerned about their vehicles' black boxes recording their every move, and more worried about their neighbors in traffic. Police in New Delhi have dished out 665 tickets for traffic violations, though not by using any traditional footwork. Instead, the local PD launched a Facebook page where fans can submit photos of bad drivers. With 6.5 million vehicles registered to drive on its roads, New Delhi is notoriously afflicted by motorists that tend to alternate between homicidal and suicidal. So far, fans of the Facebook page have submitted a rash of photos of cars and motorcycles in illegal or dangerous situations.

The New Delhi police have admitted that there may be some privacy issues at stake here, but that by and large, the system seems to be working. Citations are sent to the owners of the vehicles and issued by using license plates that are easily visible in the photos. Here's hoping this line of law enforcement remains overseas.

[Source: The New York Times]

NYT: India's police turning to Facebook to catch bad drivers originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 04 Aug 2010 08:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Detroit area mayor gets pulled over, demands speeding ticket

Dan Roth — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 17:29:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Government/Legal

Our reaction would be markedly different after getting busted for 5 mph over. Rather than excoriate the revenue enhancement agent for harassing a man of the people, Warren, MI mayor Jim Fouts was worried that the verbal warning he initially received might be viewed as favoritism by some.

Amidst chatter of questionable sanity, the mayor rang up the police department later in the day, at which point he reportedly demanded to receive a citation. Police obliged the $100 ticket, which Fouts promptly paid by dispatching a staffer to make the cash drop.

The mayor may have rightly assumed that some might view a warning as lopsided justice, but it's not like he was street racing his Dodge Charger. The gesture is clearly garnering good publicity (which cynically, could have been the objective as well). Further, we have to wonder if all the ceremony and special trips by staffers of both the police and the mayor's own office ended up costing more than the $100 he put back into the revenue pot.

At least it wasn't a red-light ticketbot.

[Soure: WXYZ, Photo: Washington Times]

Detroit area mayor gets pulled over, demands speeding ticket originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 17 Apr 2009 17:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Traffic Enfarcement: What's wrong with this picture?

Dan Roth — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 17:58:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Government/Legal, Safety

The script for selling one of these "automated revenue enhancement devices" to a municipality might go something like "and the best feature of the Robthepopulace 3000 is that it never makes a mistake - machines don't lie!" Tell that to Thomas, who received a citation in the mail after a South African traffic camera nabbed his VW Polo "clearly traveling in excess of the 60 km/h limit." Right. Technically, the camera is not lying, but machines are incapable of interpreting on their own, otherwise the fleece-bot would have noted that while the car was indeed traveling in excess of the limit, it was on a hook! Thomas got the ticket because his car obscured the plate of the tow truck dragging his little Polo somewhere. While the picture doesn't lie, the government agency drew a false conclusion and stuck to it. We wonder if the amount of the ticket could be deducted from Thomas's income tax to ensure fairness. Now that's just crazy talk. Thanks for the tip, Erwin!

[Source: Daily WTF]

Traffic Enfarcement: What's wrong with this picture? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 05 Aug 2008 17:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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