Posted on 04/25/2018 6:16:55 AM PDT by SandRat
PHOENIX — Motorists who speed a little too much or drift through stop signs may soon be paying a bit more in their debt to society.
Legislation approved Tuesday by the Senate would tack a $4 fee on all traffic fines. The proceeds would be used to pay for new training equipment for police.
But those who seek to avoid fines by going to defensive driving school won't get off the hook. HB 2527 tacks that same surcharge on to what they pay for those classes.
Mike Williams, who lobbies for the Arizona Police Association, said officers need access to the latest state-of-the art equipment to simulate situations they might find themselves in on the street. And that, he said, means more than just training to be sure that officers do not kill the wrong person.
He describes it as a room with screens covering 300 degrees. But this is more than just a movie.
"What's different about it is the characters on the screen, which are filmed by live actors, they react to how you react,'' Williams said. "So it's not really just an 'active shooter' scenario. A lot of it is teaching officers how to de-escalate a situation or talk somebody down from a situation.''
He also said the equipment also has available software that allows police departments to go out and create their own situations. What that means, Williams said, is creating a situation in an actual local school as preparation for what might happen in the future.
All that promotion still left some lawmakers cold — at least to the idea of yet another fee.
Sen. Sylvia Allen, R-Snowflake, said she sees the fee — and the $2.5 million a year it would raise — as just another unjustified growth of government, even for a good cause. And Sen. Warren Petersen, R-Gilbert, said he believes the state has plenty of revenues coming in now to meet its needs, including police training.
Williams, however, said the experience with the seven of these $300,000 interactive systems already set up across the state proves it works and it's worthwhile. powered by
He said the Tucson Police Department has already run 1,700 officers through the training.
"It's getting about a 97 percent approval rating'' from officers, Williams said. "They've also seen a reduction in their officer use-of-force incidents.''
The result, he said, is other departments want access.
Williams said Tucson could use a second one, made available for other southern Arizona police agencies. He said there also are requests from the sheriff's departments in Pinal and Yavapai counties.
The new simulation software isn't the only thing on the law enforcement shopping list if they get more money.
Williams said police departments and their training academies also want a "virtual shooting range,'' one where officers practice their skills — but without live fire.
One issue, he said, is financial: A single bullet can cost anywhere from 30 cents to $2. By contrast, the cost of operating one of these virtual ranges is in the neighborhood of a quarter-cent per "trigger pull.''
The $80,000 price tag for that, Williams said, pays for itself in five to six months.
He said these are not just some sort of video game, saying they are accurate to one-half millimeter over 500 yards.
Tuesday's Senate vote sends the measure to the House, which has never considered the issue.
Williams, sensitive to that fee question, said the legislation has language allowing a judge to waive the surcharge in cases of financial hardship.
And he said he would consider amending the bill to have the fee self-destruct after some period — perhaps five years — when the equipment has been bought and paid for.
What a crock.
Pikers @ $4. Here in CA, if you get a ticket the surcharge is generally equal or larger than the fine for the infraction. I don’t know the pctage, it’s been a long time since I got a ticket. It’s equal or slightly greater IIRC. I think a $225 ticket gets up to $575.
Let me get this straight....they fine you for being fined?
That’s BS, when will the money grab ever end?
Why not be honest and just raise the fine?
Another CA idea which will soon be rammed thru many other States.
Its a Tax on traffic violations.
QUIDADO!!!
I suspect the fine is set by law, so a bill would need to be written, pass both houses and be signed by the governor. They would all be retired by then.
in MN, the fine for not wearing your seatbelt is $25. With surcharges tacked on it gets to be about 200 bucks depending on the municipality. All of the excess except for about 10 bucks goes to police programs.
It’s a racket and an incentive to write tickets as all of them have the surcharges. They say they don’t have quotas, but this certainly creates the same incentive.
It’s like being shot for being shot.
Will the simulation software simulate the noise and recoil of live fire or will police officers be spooked and drop their guns in real action situations?
paying a bit more in their debt to society.
And he said he would consider amending the bill to have the fee self-destruct after some period — perhaps five years — when the equipment has been bought and paid for.
Kinda like California. When you get one of those red light camera tickets you get an itemized listing of where the money is going. Some of them may have started out at $4 at some time, but they’ve built up to the point that simply rolling through when making a right hand turn can cost you almost $500.
Here’s where the money goes:
http://www.laweekly.com/news/who-is-making-money-off-your-480-red-light-camera-ticket-4431740
“That’s BS, when will the money grab ever end?”
Good question. I would have thought by now the crowds carrying torches and pitchforks (so to speak) would be storming City Hall.
A parked cop hesitatingly came after me for miles on a toll road, saying I entered the onramp with a “ dangling seatbelt”. Not coincidentally it was the LAST DAY of the month
As he walked away he “ thanked me for my courtesy”
Whatta crock. It clearly is a racket. We now use Waze to help locate police on the roads, both open and hidden.
Generally I respect and support law enforcement, but not in this predatory role. Screw them. I’m more than happy to confirm their presence on Waze after that incident.
The police want/”need” new toys...
Go out and write more tickets
I live near a major artery, and while the police insist there is no quota system, for some reason, the last 5 days of the month have a whole lot more sirens sounding on the little stretch by my place.
I also see a lot more cruisers out during the last week of the month as well.
No quotas. Uh-huh.
Wow, that puts us to shame! Is that so or similar for other (moving) violations?
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