Speed Cameras on way to approval for county school zones

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ELLIJAY, Ga. – Citizens are still questioning personal information and privacy rights with the Gilmer Sheriff’s Office’s plans to install speed detection cameras in school zones in the area of Yukon/Clear Creek roads by the schools and on Highway 282 near the county Library and Mountain View Elementary.

During the Public Hearing for the County, Sheriff’s Office Major Michael Gobble spoke to citizens answering questions about the implementation.

Maj. Gobble said that the camera will not capture information from every car that drives through the zone. Not only will they only be active twice a day at the beginning and the end of each school day, but they will only capture information when triggered by a speeding violation.

The cameras will be using radar technology instead of laser and Maj. Gobble noted that the calibrations and maintenance will be upheld by the company and not the Sheriff’s Office. However, all violations and information has to pass through an officer at the Sheriff’s Office to be confirmed and double checked before any citation can be sent.

As explained, the process will follow that as a driver is speeding through the zone, a picture of the license plate is captured and sent to the Sheriff’s Office. It is then verified and sent back to the monitor company who will then mail out a civil citation. Maj. Gobble explained that as a civil citation it will not register on people’s driving history.

The signs in the area with the speed zone will have that active times posted on the signs.

While the information is in the care of the company and the Sheriff”s Office, Maj. Gobble said that both entities are under government oversight for the information and are subject to the laws governing that information. It is protected under GCIC and the same rules are applied to a company handling this information.

Maj. Gobble explained it as the same process for stoplight cameras in some cities. It is not to be sold or kept in storage for any major length of time. The information is only kept long enough for law enforcement to verify and the citation to be resolved. He noted that if a citizen wishes to bring the citation to court, then it will be kept long enough for the court case.

The Commissioners did approve the first reader of the Speed Detection Device Ordinance this month and will revisit for the final reader next month. With final approval on that reader citizens could be seeing these devices in use by the end of November.

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