Ohio Banned the Cameras That Catch You Speeding. It Kept the Ones That Watch Everyone.

Ohio spent a decade fighting traffic cameras. When its first restrictions were struck down by the Ohio Supreme Court in 2017, the legislature switched to the purse, deducting camera revenue from cities dollar for dollar and later banning county and township programs outright. In the same decade, automated license plate readers spread with almost no scrutiny, upheld by courts across the country. This essay gives the case for that distinction its full due, including real due process and revenue objections, then shows where it breaks: we banned the tool that observes guilt and kept the one that observes everyone. Featuring a Georgia ticket captured on a Flock camera, and a hard reconciliation with my own argument that cameras everywhere might save civilization.