PHOENIX — A driver has racked up dozens of speeding tickets in photo-radar zones on Phoenix-area freeways while sporting monkey and giraffe masks, and is fighting every one by claiming the costumes make it impossible for authorities to prove he was behind the wheel.
“You’ve got to identify the driver, and if you can’t, it’s not a valid ticket,” said Dave VonTesmar, a 47-year-old flight attendant.
It took Arizona state police months to realize the same driver was involved and was refusing to pay the fines. By the time they did, more than 50 of the tickets had become invalid because the deadline for prosecution had passed. Authorities have since stepped up their efforts to ensure that VonTesmar pays his $6,700 in fines.
On Aug. 19, the Arizona Department of Public Safety served VonTesmar in person with 37 tickets, mostly between 11 and 15 mph over the speed limit. The pictures accompanying the tickets show a driver wearing either a monkey or giraffe masks in VonTesmar’s white Subaru.
Agency spokesman Bart Graves said authorities have surveillance photos of VonTesmar putting on masks before driving. Graves thinks the photos will convince judges in three area cities that he was the one behind the wheel.
Arizona began deploying the stationary and mobile cameras on state highways a year ago, and through Sept. 4 had issued more than 497,000 tickets; the state had reaped more than $23 million. The backlash against the cameras has been fairly constant, however. Arizonans have used sticky notes, Silly String and even a pickax to sabotage the cameras.
