JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Our cameras caught workers out Wednesday installing new, RedFlex, red-light cameras on Beach Boulevard near Southside Boulevard.
But in Chicago, RedFlex is under fire. The company is accused of secretly showering a city official with thousands of dollars worth of free trips. The scandal has one Central Florida attorney crying foul, saying the company can't be trusted and that any tickets issued from the cameras in Osceola County should be tossed out.
We wanted to know if the Central Florida attorney could have a case. Is the allegation of corruption enough to cast doubt on the credibility of the RedFlex, and the cameras it makes? We went to local attorney Randy Reep.
He said, "That is a legitimate argument to make. Does it go very far? It very well could."
And if the argument flies in Osceola County, Reep says it will fly in Duval County as well. "I can tell you that I'll be cutting and pasting the exact motion he had. We're in the same state so the same law governs us."
The attorney in Central Florida is asking a judge to put the brakes on red-light camera hearings, until the investigation in Chicago is complete.
Action News contacted RedFlex for a response. It issued this statement: "Redflex Traffic Systems, Inc. authorized an internal investigation and, though the inquiry is not complete, have learned that some Redflex employees did not meet our own code of conduct and the standards that the people of the City of Chicago and all our clients deserve. We will take corrective action and make additional information public."
JSO declined to comment on the controversy.
No tickets from the red-light cameras have been issued in Jacksonville yet. That will end next week at Baymeadows and Southside, when the 30-day grace period ends. To learn the status of red-light cameras in your neighborhood, visit www.jaxsheriff.org.
