ELECTIONS, POLITICS, & GOVERNMENT
New bill would bring photo cop cameras back to Utah
Jan 24, 2025, 3:00 PM | Updated: 4:41 pm
A new bill would bring red light cameras, or photo cops, back to Utah. (Chris Thornblad)
(Chris Thornblad)
SALT LAKE CITY — Red light, or photo cop, cameras that take pictures at intersections have been controversial for years but they’re back on the table in Utah this legislative session. Lawmakers are hoping that new technology will help battle privacy issues.
Utah used photo cop cameras at intersections in the past but the Legislature banned them in 1996.
Rep. Jake Fitisemanu, D-Salt Lake City, said it’s time to bring them back. Fitisemanu told Dave & Dujanovic that Utah has too many cases of people running red lights and the cameras could help solve the problem.
“I’ve talked with the Department of Transportation, I’ve talked with the Utah Transit Authority. This is a rampant issue and the fact of the matter is, it’s wrong and it’s illegal regardless, but people are dying throughout the state.”
Photo cop privacy concerns
Fitisemanu said he knows similar bills have failed in the past. But, he said, modern technology could prevent the privacy issues that have previously caused concern.
“A lot of the concerns that have been brought up again, are related to pretty much [an] old school context,” he said. “I mean, the technology today is so much better. Everyone’s got a Ring camera on their front door. There are ways to do this with the consent of communities and with complete respect for our constitutional rights to privacy.”
Fitisemanu pointed to the way other states use the red light cameras.
“The state of Hawaii’s figured this out… but when you have technology-assisted enforcement, you still have a person, an actual police officer, to review that footage and to look with their own human eyes to verify whether or not that was just.”
This proposed bill would only allow a study with some test locations.
“Let’s do a study,” Fitisemanu said. “figure this out and actually report back and see if there’s a compelling reason to do it. If not, I’ll drop it.”
Britt Johnson is a reporter and anchor for KSL NewsRadio.
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