DES MOINES — Two Polk County women are suing the city of Des Moines over its use of automated traffic cameras.
Sarah Brooks and Michelle Bullock are seeking class-action status for their lawsuit, which was recently filed against the city and Gatso USA, which runs the traffic cameras.
The lawsuit says the city’s use of speed and red-light cameras violates their fundamental right to travel granted in the U.S. and Iowa constitutions.
It also says it entraps drivers in numerous ways, such as the threat of suspending a driver’s license because a ticket has not been paid.
“The plaintiffs believe that their fundamental right to travel is violated by a program that does not demonstrably increase public safety and imposes a very heavy cost upon the public,” said James Larew, the Iowa City lawyer representing Brooks and Bullock. The women are seeking to have the cameras shut down and fines refunded to those ticketed by the automated cameras.