http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/ This is an XML content feed of; Middletown Forum : Middletown News, Info and Happenings : Red Light Cameras Done Tue, 06 Oct 2026 16:36:24 +0000 Fri, 26 Jun 2015 08:39:21 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Web Wiz Forums 10.12 360 www.middletownusa.com/forum/RSS_post_feed.asp?TID=6050 http://middletownusa.com/images/blog-logo.jpg http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/ http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45813&title=red-light-cameras-done#45813 Author: FmrMide81
Subject: 6050
Posted: Jun 26 2015 at 8:39am

Mayor Mulligan is "disappointed"?? I'll bet. When your screwed up city isn't even worth a nominal bribe from a red light camera company you SHOULD be disappointed!!]]> Fri, 26 Jun 2015 08:39:21 +0000 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45813&title=red-light-cameras-done#45813 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45812&title=red-light-cameras-done#45812 Author: VietVet
Subject: 6050
Posted: Jun 26 2015 at 6:05am

From the post above from John Beagle:

"The city of Middletown on Monday deactivated and placed bags over 14 red light cameras located at eight intersections throughout the city to comply with a new state law"

From 409's current post:

"The cameras are still recording violations in Trotwood, Springfield, West Carrollton, Hamilton and Middletown, but motorists in those cities are not being fined for infractions caught on camera"

Are they recording or are the cameras covered?

"In 2014, the cameras brought in $169,636 for the city of Middletown"

I thought it was all about safety. ]]> Fri, 26 Jun 2015 06:05:45 +0000 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45812&title=red-light-cameras-done#45812 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45811&title=red-light-cameras-done#45811 Author: 409
Subject: 6050
Posted: Jun 25 2015 at 8:03pm

MJ:
Officials say Hamilton, Middletown not part of FBI’s RedFlex probe

By Steve Bennish and Ed Richter
Staff Writer
MIDDLETOWN —
A federal investigation that focused on Ohio politicians who allegedly received bribes for helping a traffic-ticket camera company secure contracts hasn’t driven up in Middletown or Hamilton, officials in those cities said.

Some city council members and city administrators said they were surprised to learn over the weekend that a former chief executive officer for RedFlex Traffic Systems pleaded guilty to an eight-year bribery and fraud scheme.

“It’s certainly disappointing that this happened,” Middletown Mayor Larry Mulligan Jr. said.

The mayor and Middletown City Manager Doug Adkins said they have not received any inquiries from federal investigators related to the RedFlex contract with the city. Middletown, which has 14 red-light cameras installed throughout the city, first contracted with RedFlex in 2005 and there is one year remaining on the current contract.

The former RedFlex executive, Karen L. Finley, 55, of Cave Creek, Arizona, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit federal programs bribery and honest services wire and mail fraud. The Federal Bureau of Investigation probe also involved unnamed individuals in Cincinnati and Columbus, the FBI said.

Hamilton Law Director Heather Sanderson Lewis said in an email Thursday “I am not aware of any subpoenas to the city of Hamilton or discussion with any investigators in connection with RedFlex.”

Hamilton, which used a sports utility vehicle with a radar and mounted cameras to monitor the speed of drivers, collected about $82,000 from the RedFlex cameras last year.

The investigation is ongoing, said Justice Department spokeswoman Nicole A. Navas. She declined to provide details.

Asked whether the investigation involved other southwest Ohio communities that use the cameras, Navas declined comment.

“We wouldn’t comment on specifics of an ongoing investigation,” she said.

The ticket cameras began to appear in area cities in 2005. The cameras are still issuing tickets in Akron, Dayton and Toledo as those cities have challenged a state law requiring a police officer be present when cameras are operational. The case is scheduled for oral arguments in the Second District Court of Appeals in Dayton on July 28.

The cameras are still recording violations in Trotwood, Springfield, West Carrollton, Hamilton and Middletown, but motorists in those cities are not being fined for infractions caught on camera.

In 2014, the cameras brought in $169,636 for the city of Middletown.

According to Finley’s plea agreement, various unnamed elected officials in both Cincinnati and Columbus received disbursements from a consultant hired by RedFlex. The payments were in the form of campaign contributions. The Columbus Dispatch reported that one of the officials implicated is Columbus City Council president Andrew Ginther.

“The initial stories linking me to these acts were flat-out wrong,” Ginther said earlier this week. “This is not about me. It never has been about me and never will be about me.

“What is true is that, like others, I have been asked by the U.S. Attorney’s office to assist by gathering information that may be relevant and helpful to the investigation of RedFlex.”

Columbus mayor Michael B. Coleman said in a statement that he is “confident that the Department complied with the appropriate laws, rules, regulations, and city policies.”

The roots of the RedFlex investigation appear to start in Chicago, where an October 2012 story in the Chicago Tribune disclosed what the newspaper called “a 2-year-old internal whistleblower memo written by an ousted RedFlex vice president that detailed the alleged bribery scheme.”

The Tribune said that when the story was published, RedFlex was the favorite to win the contract for Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s speed camera program. Emanuel then banned RedFlex from holding the contract.

Finley has pleaded not guilty in the Chicago federal case, where she is accused as part of a $2 million bribery scheme, funneling cash, lavish trips and an Arizona condominium to now-retired city transportation manager John Bills, according to the Tribune.

RedFlex said it has ousted top executives in response to the federal investigation.

In a lawsuit, one former executive alleged that the company had a long practice of offering gifts and bribes in dozens of municipalities in 13 states. Those include California, Washington, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Colorado, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Florida, New Jersey, Tennessee, Virginia and Georgia.
]]> Thu, 25 Jun 2015 20:03:48 +0000 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45811&title=red-light-cameras-done#45811 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45782&title=red-light-cameras-done#45782 Author: Dean
Subject: 6050
Posted: Jun 19 2015 at 3:51pm

Of course the program has been all about safety and nothing else since the cameras began to be used.  ]]> Fri, 19 Jun 2015 15:51:07 +0000 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45782&title=red-light-cameras-done#45782 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45781&title=red-light-cameras-done#45781 Author: over the hill
Subject: 6050
Posted: Jun 19 2015 at 3:42pm

Has any one asked Miss Judy or Mr. Landon if they have any additional information to add to this inquiry? ]]> Fri, 19 Jun 2015 15:42:33 +0000 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45781&title=red-light-cameras-done#45781 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45780&title=red-light-cameras-done#45780 Author: 409
Subject: 6050
Posted: Jun 19 2015 at 2:45pm

MJ:
Red light camera vendor pleads guilty to bribery scheme

By Breaking News Staff
A former chief executive officer for red light ticket camera company RedFlex, the vendor for red light cameras in the Dayton and Middletown areas, pleaded guilty today to participating in an eight-year bribery and fraud scheme, the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced.

There was no mention in the announcement of any links to the region, but officials in Columbus and Cincinnati were said to be involved in the scheme.

The announcement came from Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Carter M. Stewart of the Southern District of Ohio and Special Agent in Charge Angela L. Byers of the FBI’s Cincinnati Field Office.

The executive, Karen L. Finley, 55, of Cave Creek, Arizona, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Terence P. Kemp of the Southern District of Ohio to a one-count information charging her with conspiracy to commit federal programs bribery and honest services wire and mail fraud.

Finley’s sentencing hearing will be scheduled at a later date, the FBI said.

According to the announcement, from December 2005 to February 2013, Finley, who served as CEO of the red light camera enforcement company. admitted that, between 2005 and 2013, she participated in a scheme in which the company made campaign contributions to elected public officials in the cities of Columbus and Cincinnati through a consultant retained by the company. No dollar figures were provided.

“According to admissions made in connection with her plea, Finley and others, including another executive of the company, agreed to provide the conduit campaign contributions with the understanding that the elected public officials would assist the company in obtaining or retaining municipal contracts, including a photo red light enforcement contract with the City of Columbus. Finley also admitted she and her co-conspirators concealed the true nature and source of the payments by the consultant’s submission and the company’s payment of false invoices for “consulting services,” which funds the consultant then provided to the campaigns of the elected public officials,” the release said.

The FBI said the case was investigated by the FBI’s Cincinnati Field Office, Columbus Resident Agency, with the assistance of IRS-Criminal Investigations and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Edward P. Sullivan of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Michael Marous of the Southern District of Ohio.

RedFlex also operates speed cameras, which the city of Hamilton and village of New Miami ha contracts with the company’s services with regards to speed cameras.
]]> Fri, 19 Jun 2015 14:45:33 +0000 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45780&title=red-light-cameras-done#45780 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45238&title=red-light-cameras-done#45238 Author: John Beagle
Subject: 6050
Posted: Mar 26 2015 at 12:20pm

The city of Middletown on Monday deactivated and placed bags over 14 red light cameras located at eight intersections throughout the city to comply with a new state law.

No bags over Oxford and Cinday yet.

Why say bags will be put if they are deactivating them otherwise?

]]> Thu, 26 Mar 2015 12:20:08 +0000 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45238&title=red-light-cameras-done#45238 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45225&title=red-light-cameras-done#45225 Author: chmoore1
Subject: 6050
Posted: Mar 25 2015 at 1:00pm

VV: perhaps they disabled it some other way, but it was working about a month ago. I was waiting on the light to change and it went off for another vehicle. I suppose that if it is still active, it won't go any further. just 1chmoore.]]> Wed, 25 Mar 2015 13:00:31 +0000 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45225&title=red-light-cameras-done#45225 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45221&title=red-light-cameras-done#45221 Author: VietVet
Subject: 6050
Posted: Mar 25 2015 at 11:15am

chmoore1 wrote: As of last night (Tuesday, March 24) no "bags" had been placed over the cameras at Breiel and Central. I don't know if their comment was literal or figurative. If literal, it hasn't happened. just 1 chmoore

Could be wrong here ch but wasn't this camera removed some time ago and placed at another location announced by the city? Thought it was just a camera stand with no guts inside. Anyone?]]> Wed, 25 Mar 2015 11:15:53 +0000 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45221&title=red-light-cameras-done#45221 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45218&title=red-light-cameras-done#45218 Author: chmoore1
Subject: 6050
Posted: Mar 25 2015 at 9:25am

As of last night (Tuesday, March 24) no "bags" had been placed over the cameras at Breiel and Central. I don't know if their comment was literal or figurative. If literal, it hasn't happened. just 1 chmoore]]> Wed, 25 Mar 2015 09:25:08 +0000 http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6050&PID=45218&title=red-light-cameras-done#45218