Court Decisions Photo radar fighters win case, get ticket tossed
Photo radar fighters win case, get ticket tossed
CBC News Posted: May 18, 2012 12:53 PM CT Last Updated: May 18, 2012 1:46 PM CT
Philip Johst speaks to media on Friday while Todd Dube (left, in glasses) of Wise Up Winnipeg listens in. (Sean Kavanagh/CBC) http://wiseupwinnipeg.com/
A driver who challenged a photo radar speeding ticket from a controversial intersection in Winnipeg has won his court case.
But Philip Johst is actually disappointed the Crown decided to quietly toss the charge.
He wanted the issue to be challenged by the Crown and wanted to win a ruling that could be used to set precedence for hundreds of others who also claim they were unfairly ticketed at the same spot.
By staying the ticket, the Crown effectively shut down an argument the photo radar units are flawed.
Todd Dube with Wise Up Winnipeg, a group dedicated to fighting photo radar, is disgusted with the Crown's tactic.
"This is a court of justice? Are you kidding me? This is a disgrace," he said.
Ken Sontag, an electrical engineer who chairs an electrical instruments company, had testified as an expert witness for the defence, saying the beam generated by the photo radar can be affected by metal objects such as signs and fire hydrants to give false readings.
The Crown tried but failed to have Sontag disqualified as a witness because his wife had been issued a ticket at the same location.
When the judge asked if the Crown had any expert witnesses for their case, the prosecutor declined and stayed the charge.
Johst received his ticket last November.
He has been backed in his fight by Wise Up Winnipeg who, along with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, claim to have gathered signatures of about 900 motorists, representing thousands of tickets.
The two groups say drivers claim they have been ticketed for driving between 65 and 85 kilometres an hour on a street that has a posted limit of 50 kilometres an hour.
Colin Craig, the CTF's director in the Prairies, has said there is no way a vehicle could move that fast as soon as it turns onto Grant westbound at Nathaniel.
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