A Portland traffic camera ticketed a man instead of his granddaughter, and he nearly lost his license.
A Red Light, A Wrong Name
The case involved a traffic-camera citation issued to a man instead of his granddaughter, according to KGW.
The citation had passed through Portland's traffic camera review process before it was mailed out.
Oregon's Photo-Radar Rules
For photo-radar speeding citations issued and delivered as required, Oregon law creates a rebuttable presumption that the registered owner was driving. An individual who was not driving may rebut that presumption with a certificate of innocence, under the state's photo-radar statute cited by the Oregon Legislature.
With no response on file, Multnomah County Circuit Court convicted Thompson on August 19 of failing to obey a traffic control device and ordered him to pay the $270 fine.
A Decade-Long License Suspension, Averted
Thompson nearly lost his license after the citation was issued to him instead of his granddaughter.
After Thompson reached out to NovoaGlobal's customer support center, the company that operates Portland's traffic cameras, an employee there directed him to Portland officials rather than resolving the matter directly, the station reported. NovoaGlobal told the station that it must conduct image and data quality reviews and update driver information to identify the correct driver under its city contract, but its response did not explain how the age and photograph discrepancy made it through that review process in the first place.
Police Acknowledge the Mistake
The citation was dismissed and Thompson's conviction reversed only after KGW questioned the Portland Police Bureau about the discrepancy. The threatened license suspension was then canceled. The bureau acknowledged that an officer had made a mistake on the citation, even though officers are required to review the photograph before signing off, and the officer who signed Thompson's ticket had certified there were sufficient grounds to believe he committed the violation.
A Growing Camera Network
Portland's traffic-camera program is expanding. The city has 32 traffic cameras, and all of them are slated for replacement and upgrades under an agreement involving the Portland Bureau of Transportation, the police bureau and NovoaGlobal, according to KPTV. New cameras are planned for Southeast Powell Boulevard and 34th Street, Northeast 82nd Avenue and Fremont Street, and Northeast 82nd Avenue and Klickitat Street, with two more cameras planned for Southeast Powell and 60th in 2026 and two additional cameras on Southwest Barbur Boulevard in the design phase.
Portland's High Crash Network makes up just 8% of the city's streets but accounted for 70% of deadly crashes in 2022, according to the same KPTV report.
The Statesman Journal has reported that ignoring a speed-camera ticket in Oregon can lead to escalating consequences.
