Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Traffic Enforcement topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Palm Bay council approves $6,000 for magistrate hearings as Red Speed camera program remains suspended
Summary
Palm Bay council voted to authorize $6,000 from school‑zone camera revenues to cover magistrate fees for hundreds of residents contesting Red Speed citations while staff confirmed the automated camera program remains suspended pending vendor and legal reviews.
City Manager Morton asked council on July 7 to authorize a $6,000 allocation from Red Speed school‑zone camera revenues to cover magistrate/hearing fees for residents contesting citations.
"This money will be used to fund an additional number of hearings before the administrative law judge," Morton said, adding that the city has several hundred hearings already scheduled and more contestations pending.
Former Deputy Chief Lance Fisher, speaking during public comment, sharply criticized the program: "For full transparency... this was a money grab, a straight up money grab. There was 0 discussion about children's safety," Fisher said, asserting the program prioritized revenue over safety. He told council he could supply internal text messages to support that claim and questioned whether physical enforcement would better target dangerous locations.
Police and city staff pushed back on the broad characterizations while acknowledging problems. The Police Chief said the violations are "legit" in many instances but conceded several categories of errors and a set of technical failures that prompted an earlier suspension of the vendor's system. The chief and Morton said the department has lost confidence in the vendor's responsiveness and that the program remains nonoperational while legal and contractual issues are resolved.
The chief explained the $6,000 request is limited to magistrate fees required by the contract to process hearings and is not payment of fines or citation revenue. "That's strictly what that's for," the chief said of the allocation, "to cover the cost of the magistrate being here during that duration of the hearing."
Bill Batten and other public commenters urged council to consider using overtime for physical officer presence instead of automated cameras. Morton and police leaders said implementation costs and staffing constraints make targeted physical enforcement difficult to scale in the short term.
Council approved the $6,000 allocation to cover magistrate fees; the motion passed 4‑0. Staff confirmed the Red Speed system is suspended and said they are pursuing legal remedies and alternative service‑provider assessments before any relaunch.
