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Iowa Supreme Court hears $75 traffic ticket case

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September 20th, 2017 by Ric Hanson

The Iowa Supreme Court has taken the unusual move of hearing a small claims case stemming from a speeding ticket. The court today (Wednesday) heard a case brought by 67-year-old Marla Leaf, who argued her constitutional rights were violated after an automated camera ticketed her for speeding on a freeway in her hometown of Cedar Rapids. It was her first speeding ticket, and Leaf says she wasn’t speeding.

Her attorney, James Larew, argued Cedar Rapids violates equal protection and due process clauses of the Iowa Constitution in part because it delegates police power to a private, for-profit company. Attorneys for Cedar Rapids say the city’s system abides by state law. After the hearing, Leaf said she pursued the case simply because, “Why should I pay for a ticket I didn’t do?” The fine for the ticket, which was issued in Feb., 2015, amounted to $75.

Leaf’s case is unusual because the Iowa Supreme Court rarely takes small claims cases. Such cases are closely watched by other communities with automated traffic equipment.