Rockport Hit With Speed Trap Lawsuit

It's not a very large town. But Rockport sits right between Interstate 30 and the Hot Spring county seat of Malvern.

And everyday more than 10,000 cars pass through town and the scrutiny of the Rockport police.

Benton Lawyer George Ellis says, ?We just don't know how many thousands and thousands of people out there have been the victim of these kinds of injustices. And we're going to put a stop to it.?

Ellis filed a lawsuit against the city of Rockport, the mayor and the city judge, alleging a conspiracy to earn more than 30 percent of city revenues through speeding tickets.

And Ellis says Rockport isn't the only town that may have to answer to the allegations, ?I've also alleged class action status as far as the defendants are concerned, that the defendant represents a class of cities with city courts, cities living out of their court revenues. And we don't know how many there are out there.?

Rockport Mayor Darrell Hughes says, ?Very seldom ever write a ticket for under 10 miles an hour over the speed limit. Most of ours are over 10 miles an hour. Probably 90 percent of our tickets are 10 miles or more over the speed limit.?

Hughes says his town is not a speed trap. He says his officers write tickets only to keep the highway safe for both Rockport residents and motorists passing through.

Hughes says, ?We were investigated by the state of Arkansas, the state police two years ago to make sure whether or not we fall under that speed trap law. And they cleared us and everything and said that we're not running a speed trap here.?

----------- Here's the state law governing speed traps:

12-8-401. Title. This subchapter may be known as and cited as the ?Arkansas Speed Trap Law.?

12-8-402. Definitions. As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

(1) ?Abusing police power? means the exercise of police power to enforce criminal and traffic laws for the principal purpose of raising revenue for the municipality and not for the purpose of public safety and welfare; (2) ?Affected highway? means a multilane divided highway or limited access divided highway which is part of the state highway system, or both; and (3) ?Affected municipality? means any city of the second class or incorporated town through which passes an affected highway.

12-8-403. Public hearing to determine abuse.

(a)(1) Upon the request of the prosecuting attorney of any judicial district in which an affected municipality is located, the Director of the Department of Arkansas State Police is authorized to call a public hearing to investigate and determine whether any municipality is abusing police power. 2)(A) The hearing shall be conducted at a public meeting at the county courthouse in the county where the affected municipality is located. B) Notice of the time and place of the public meeting shall be published in a newspaper having general circulation in the county for two (2) consecutive weeks, the last publication being not more than ten (10) days prior to the meeting.

(b) It shall be presumed that the affected municipality is abusing police power upon a finding that:

(1) The amount of revenue produced by fines and costs from traffic law violations for which citations were written by the police department of the affected municipality occurring on the affected highways exceeds thirty percent (30%) of the affected municipality's total expenditures, less capital expenditures and debt service, in the preceding year; or (2) More than fifty percent (50%) of the summons written for speeding in the affected municipality are written for speed limit violations which were ten miles per hour (10 m.p.h.) or less than the posted limit.

12-8-404. Sanctions.

(a) Upon a determination that the municipality is abusing police power, the Director of the Department of Arkansas State Police shall have the power to issue the following sanctions: (1) Order that a municipality abusing police power shall cease patrolling any or all affected highways; and (2) Order that all or any part of future fines and court costs received from traffic law violations or misdemeanor cases where the location of the offense is an affected highway shall be paid over to the county general fund of the county in which the municipality is located. (b) Any violation of the sanction ordered under subdivision (a)(1) of this section by any police officer shall constitute a Class A misdemeanor for each citation, summons, or misdemeanor arrest made in violation of the director's order.