Florida: Radar Detector Ban - SB2228
There is a bill being considered by the Florida Legislature that requires your immediate attention.
This bill, SB2228, would ban the use of radar detectors in Florida.
An excerpt from the bill is below:
316.1907 Radar or laser speed-measuring device detectors or jammers prohibited; penalties.--
(1) A driver may not operate a motor vehicle on a street or highway in this state if the vehicle is equipped with a device that is in operating condition and readily accessible for use by the driver or any passenger and that detects, jams, or otherwise interferes with the operation of a radar, as defined in s. 316.1906, operated by a law enforcement officer.
(2) Enforcement of this section by state or local law enforcement agencies must be accomplished only as a secondary action when a driver of a motor vehicle has been detained for a suspected violation of another section of this chapter, chapter 320, or chapter 322.
(3) A violation of this section is a non-criminal traffic infraction, punishable as a moving violation as provided in chapter 318.
We urge you to contact your legislators and let them know how you feel about this bill. You can find out who your legislators are by visiting this site.
Some talking points can be found below:
- Banning radar detectors is an affront to personal freedom. Everyday citizens should have the right to know if they are under surveillance.
- Radar detectors do not have a negative effect on safety. The nation's fatality rates have fallen consistently for almost two decades. Virginia, which is the only state to ban radar detectors, has not seen a more substantial drop in fatalities than the nation as a whole.
- Radar detectors get drivers to slow down. If the intent is to punish speeders, then banning radar detectors would help that effort; however if the intent is to get speeds down and improve safety, then radar detectors do just that and should be available to Florida drivers.
- Radar detector users are a small segment of the driving population and have very little effect on overall driving speeds. A 1987 survey showed that radar detector owners are involved in fewer accidents as a percentage of the population than are non-users.
- Detectors protect citizens from unfair police tactics. The fact is that radar readings by police officers are often in error. In light of this reality, there is a strong case for citizens to be able to monitor the use of radar, so they don't become victims of false readings.
