A Denver TV news crew did a spot on the spray and other products a few years ago with the cooperation of the police department, which set up a speed van on a closed track. If the newscast is to be believed (see it at www.phantomplate.com), the product worked as advertised.
Commander John Lamb of the Denver Police Department, however, says the experiment was hardly scientific. If the police had done a test, Lamb says, "it would be much more effective than some Fox 31 bimbo driving through the thing."
Mike Maas
Giulio Sciorio
Francesca Cisneros achieved infamy last year after getting 70 photo-enforcement tickets.
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He admits the spray did put glare on the plate, as the newscast shows. But he still thinks it's a rip-off.
At $30 a can, he might be right. For sure, none of the companies that sell these products guarantees you won't get a ticket.
"A can of [lacquer] would do the same thing," Lamb says.
Phoenix police say they put a few of the products through the wringer in an unpublicized test about four years ago, after the city had installed its first red-light cameras, and neither the shield nor the spray worked.
A perfect test of the shield and spray under real-world conditions would have to involve the photo-enforcement companies. If the vendors have conducted such tests and know the products work, they aren't saying.
What is certain is that they attract unwanted police attention on the road. The sprays are invisible, but the shields could make a vehicle's license plate illegible to live police, which is a ticketable offense in Arizona.
Public records show that police in cities with traffic cameras do occasionally stop and cite motorists for having an obscured license plate. A cop who doesn't appreciate what the shield is for may pull you over because of it.
That happened twice to one local Corvette driver, who used a type of shield that allows the plate numbers to be read only when directly behind the vehicle. (A bill now before the state legislature aims to outlaw such shields.) The driver, who did not wish to be named for this article, says she's positive the shield kept her from getting tickets on Loop 101.
But the second time she was stopped, the officer took pictures of the plastic shield for evidence and wrote her a $90 ticket.
"So I took it off," she says. "And lo and behold, on the frickin' 101, I got a $188 ticket."
Soon after your photo ticket comes in the mail, or possibly before, you'll get an advertisement from Joe Geremia of Angelfire Enterprises, who wants to charge you $65 for advice he says will help you beat the rap.
A few years ago, Geremia won a court ruling that forced cities to hand over the names and addresses of all ticket-getters. He's not making millions off his paid advice — he lives in a Glendale mobile home — but he says he makes a profit.
Geremia's info is accurate, but the "product" is grossly overpriced. Responding to the come-on gets you four printed pages containing Geremia's feelings about photo enforcement and instruction to hide from the process servers, who come in the evenings and weekends.
You already know that now. You just saved $65.
One source of good information, though, is a book by Scottsdale attorney Susan Kayler called Smile for the Speed Camera: Photo Radar Exposed!
Assuming you've tried everything but still got served and have a court date, you may find Kayler's book and Web site (www.photoradarlaw.com) of special interest. They give detailed instructions on various defenses to use at your hearing. For example, most posted speed limits are soft in Arizona, giving motorists the privilege to drive at "reasonable and prudent" speeds.
Although judges usually consider anything over the speed limit unreasonable, since speed limits are based on traffic-engineering studies of what the road can safely handle, people frequently squeak out of tickets with this argument. If the road is not crowded, no kids are playing on the sidewalk and it isn't raining, the judge might have mercy on you.
Losing the hearing means you can't take defensive driving school to avoid penalty points on your license. But the odds of losing aren't as bad as you might think. In a recent six-month period in Paradise Valley, the court found 142 defendants responsible in photo cases, while another 184 were either found not responsible or had their cases dismissed at the hearing. Nine more people were found responsible but didn't have to pay fines.
Some cases are thrown out at the hearing before the judge gets involved because the motorist convinces the state's witness (a police officer or an employee of the photo-enforcement company) that there is no case.
Lenny Montanaro, Mesa's court administrator, says he's seen red-light camera pictures that captured a microsecond when both the yellow and the red lights were glowing at the same time. Although the police may push those violations through the system, he says, they are dismissed "in a split second" when the motorist shows the picture on the hearing day.
The lesson: Take a good look at the photo before paying the fine.
As with all things legal, you'll stand a better chance with a good lawyer by your side.
