http://chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/metro/4580963.html

<quote>
The bail bondsman who intentionally ran a camera-monitored red light
months ago to gain legal standing to sue the city says he plans to file
his lawsuit in state district court early this week.

Michael Kubosh said Sunday that he will argue the city cannot impose a
civil penalty on drivers who run red lights.

"The city has gone outside their legislative authority,"

<snip for brevity>

State lawmakers debated for years whether municipalities should be able
to issue civil citations to red-light runners using camera technology.
In 2003, they amended the traffic code to permit the civil enforcement
of vehicle safety standards under state law or municipal ordinance.

Kubosh called that an "obscure provision" that does not allow the city
to go ahead with its program.

City Attorney Arturo Michel responded that argument won't hold up in court.

<snip for brevity>

Kubosh ran the light at Milam and Elgin in September, and later
contested the ticket so he would have legal standing to sue the city.

He argues the city cannot issue civil citations to offenders because
that conflicts with state law, which defines running a red light as a
misdemeanor criminal offense. Offenders caught by police can face a fine
up to $200.

Getting caught on camera, however, is a civil violation that carries a
$75 fine. The ticket goes to the owner of the vehicle, or the last
person to register it, not necessarily the driver. Those who are
ticketed are expected to pay the fine or contest the penalty in court.

"The city's administrative enforcement procedure deprives traffic-ticket
defendants of their constitutional rights, such as the right to trial by
jury, the right to remain silent, the right to confront witnesses
against them, and the right to have their guilt proven beyond a
reasonable doubt," reads a draft of the lawsuit.

Those rights are reserved for criminal offenders, not civil.

Studies reviewing crash data at camera-monitored intersections elsewhere
show mixed findings.

A 2005 report by the Federal Highway Administration showed that in seven
communities where red-light cameras were being used, right-angle crashes
decreased 24 percent while rear-end crashes increased 15 percent.

</quote>