Lake Forest Park judge reduces school-zone camera fines in multiple mitigation hearings, dismisses owner-not-driver case

Judge Pro Tem Jim Kovac reduced camera-based school-zone fines in multiple mitigation hearings at the Lake Forest Park Municipal Court calendar on June 2, 2025, and dismissed at least one ticket after a registered owner said they were not the driver.

The court heard a series of citations generated by school-zone cameras and took mitigation pleas from defendants who admitted the infractions but asked for lower penalties. In repeated rulings, Jim Kovac, Judge Pro Tem, found defendants had committed the infractions and reduced the penalty amounts from the ticket face value (typically $145) to $80, with the option to set up time payments through the clerk’s office.

Why it matters: Camera-issued school-zone citations are handled administratively in Lake Forest Park and do not count as moving violations, but the fines and any administrative outcomes (including reporting to the state Department of Licensing) affect drivers directly. The court’s routine use of mitigation hearings and standardized reductions affects many residents who receive camera notices.

Most hearings followed the same structure: the judge explained options — pay, mitigation (admit and request a reduction), contest (trial), or a deferred finding (pay $175 and avoid another infraction for six months to secure dismissal). Several defendants said they were unfamiliar with the roadway or the signs, or that the lights were not flashing. Kovac repeatedly noted that camera infractions “are not a moving violation” and offered reduced penalties or deferred-payment options.

Examples from the calendar: - Wanda Wong admitted the offense and described using the phone for directions while working as a mobile notary. Kovac reduced her penalty from $145 to $80 and directed that notice of the reduction and payment options be mailed to her. (Case recorded in the hearing excerpt.) - Yuri Quan requested mitigation for a school-zone citation and was found to have committed the infraction; Kovac reduced the fine to $80 and notified Quan he could make time payments. (Mitigation accepted.) - Dale Twitchell had two matters on the same date; the judge dismissed one citation outright and, after mitigation on the other, reduced that penalty to $80. (Judge: dismissed one case, reduced the other.) - A case involving Lu (Lou) Duck Hung, who said he was the registered owner but not the driver, was dismissed after the owner swore that a family member drove the car at the time. Kovac dismissed that matter pursuant to the testimony provided. - Henley (Hanley) Adams, Nick Handwerke, Joan Elvin and others likewise elected mitigation and had penalties reduced to $80; the court told defendants it would mail the determination and provide payment options.

Court staff and the judge repeatedly explained the deferred-finding option: pay $175 within 30 days and avoid new moving or nonmoving violations for six months to obtain a dismissal. Kovac cautioned respondents that failure to pay the $175 or receipt of a subsequent infraction during the six-month period would void the agreement and result in imposition of the full penalty plus the administrative fee.

The calendar also included several failures to appear. Court staff and the judge discussed marking those matters as default/FTA for administrative follow-up; staff noted a preference to allow defendants who call within a short window to reschedule rather than leave matters in collections automatically.

The court told participants that the mailed notice would identify case numbers and payment options (online, by phone, by mail, or in person at the clerk’s window). Kovac advised drivers to watch posted times and flashing lights for school-zone speed limits and said the camera-recorded speeds are treated as evidence in these infractions.

For readers: these matters were adjudicated on the municipal court calendar; the reductions described above reflect individual mitigation dispositions made on the record rather than broader ordinance changes or policy statements from the city.