Client Successes

BB&K Attorneys Successfully Represent City That Used Red Light Camera Evidence in Traffic Case

Best Best & Krieger LLP attorney Kira L. Klatchko successfully briefed and argued to the California Supreme Court that evidence generated by an automated traffic enforcement system (ATES, otherwise known as “red light camera”) should be authenticated like other photographic evidence, and that the machine-generated photographs were not out-of-court statements constituting hearsay.

In the closely watched case of People v. Goldsmith, the City of Inglewood used several photographs generated by an ATES to prosecute the defendant for failing to stop at a red light. The defendant objected to the evidence and argued it was wrongly admitted. The trial court commissioner and, ultimately, the unanimous state Supreme Court, found the evidence was properly admitted.