08/19/2026
🚨 AN OPEN LETTER TO THE COMMUNITY OF EAST CANTON 🚨
Regarding Traffic Enforcement Cameras
To the Residents of the Village of East Canton:
As the person entrusted with the responsibility for the safety and security of the citizens of East Canton, I believe it is important to address some of the misinformation and misleading statements that have recently been circulated regarding the Village’s traffic enforcement cameras.
First and foremost, these cameras were not installed simply to generate revenue or to inconvenience motorists. They were installed because residents asked us to address a very real and persistent public-safety problem.
For an extended period of time, the East Canton Police Department received complaints on an almost daily basis from residents living in the areas where these cameras are now located. Residents repeatedly told us that vehicles were traveling through their neighborhoods at speeds well above the posted limits. These were not isolated complaints. They were consistent, recurring concerns from people who live in these areas and have to deal with the consequences of excessive speeding every day.
In response to those complaints, traffic studies were conducted. Those studies confirmed what residents had been telling us: vehicles were, in fact, traveling through these areas at excessive speeds.
The Police Department responded the way we traditionally have—by putting officers in those areas and enforcing the speed limit. At times, officers conducted 200 or more traffic stops in a single month. Despite those efforts, there was no noticeable or sustained reduction in the speeding problem.
The reality is that a police department can only put so many officers in so many places at one time.
The Village does not have the resources to hire enough additional police officers to permanently station officers at these locations 24 hours a day, seven days a week solely for the purpose of monitoring speeding. Doing so would require a significant increase in the cost of government and, ultimately, place a substantial additional burden on the taxpayers of East Canton.
I do not believe that is fair to the residents who are already doing the right thing—obeying the speed limit, driving responsibly, and simply asking to feel safe in their own neighborhoods.
The traffic enforcement cameras provided another option: place the financial consequence of violating the law on the person who chooses to violate it, rather than placing the entire financial burden on the citizens who are following the law.
Unfortunately, after seeing several misleading social-media posts and statements—many of them made by people who do not even live in the Village—it became apparent that there are significant misconceptions about how this system actually works.
I would like to address some of them directly.
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🚫 THESE ARE NOT FLOCK CAMERAS
The traffic enforcement cameras are not Flock cameras. They are not a system designed to track people’s movements throughout the community.
They do not follow an individual from one location to another. They are not part of some interconnected surveillance network throughout other communities.
Their purpose is considerably narrower: to detect vehicles traveling at speeds that exceed the programmed enforcement threshold at the specific location where the camera is installed.
When a vehicle exceeds that threshold, the system captures photographic evidence and a short video associated with the alleged violation.
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👮 THE CAMERAS DO NOT AUTOMATICALLY ISSUE CITATIONS
Another misconception is that the cameras automatically issue citations without human involvement.
That is not how the system operates.
The recorded information is reviewed by a police officer before a citation is issued. The officer reviews the photographic and video evidence and determines whether the violation meets the requirements for enforcement.
Access to the information is also restricted to authorized personnel involved in the enforcement and court process. It is not simply available for anyone to access.
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⚠️ THE CAMERAS ARE CLEARLY IDENTIFIED
There should also be no confusion about where these cameras are located or whether motorists are given notice that photo enforcement is being used.
Numerous signs are posted throughout the areas where the traffic enforcement cameras are located, providing motorists with notice that they are entering an area where photo enforcement is in use. In addition, photo-enforcement warning signs are placed at entrances to the Village.
Motorists therefore have multiple opportunities to become aware that they are entering East Canton and that traffic laws will be enforced.
The purpose of these signs is not to hide the cameras or catch unsuspecting drivers. Quite the opposite—the Village wants motorists to know that speeding will be enforced and to give them every opportunity to simply slow down and obey the law.
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🛑 THE ENFORCEMENT THRESHOLD IS NOT SET AT THE SPEED LIMIT
Another misconception is that someone can receive a citation for traveling just a few miles per hour over the posted limit.
That is not how the system is being operated.
The enforcement threshold in East Canton is 10 miles per hour above the posted speed limit. At a location with a 35-mph speed limit, for example, a vehicle would have to be traveling 46 mph or faster before reaching the enforcement threshold.
These cameras are therefore not designed to punish ordinary motorists who make an occasional minor mistake. They are intended to address vehicles traveling at substantially excessive speeds in locations where residents have repeatedly told us speeding is a problem.
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⚖️ THESE VIOLATIONS ARE CIVIL VIOLATIONS
There has also been misinformation regarding the nature of these citations.
Under Ohio law, a traffic violation detected through a traffic-law photo-monitoring device is treated as a civil violation, rather than a criminal traffic charge.
That distinction matters.
A photo-enforcement citation does not create a criminal conviction or criminal record in the same manner as a traditional criminal traffic offense. However, unpaid civil obligations may be subject to the collection procedures permitted by law up to and including reporting to credit bureaus and wage garnishment.
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💵 WHY IS THERE A $175 FINE?
Some have characterized the $175 civil fine as excessive.
The purpose of a traffic enforcement system is to change behavior and discourage violations. If there were no meaningful consequence for repeatedly driving at excessive speeds, there would be little reason for anyone to take the enforcement mechanism seriously.
The $175 civil fine is intended to provide that consequence. It is not intended to be a punishment for responsible drivers.
Unlike a traditional moving violation, a civil photo-enforcement citation does not carry the same type of insurance consequences associated with a moving violation. It is, however, comparable in price to a traditional citation.
The easiest way to avoid the fine is simply to obey the posted speed limit.
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🏘️ WHAT HAPPENS TO THE MONEY COLLECTED?
I also want to address another concern that has been raised regarding the fines collected through the photo-enforcement program.
Mayor Spencer has specifically developed a plan to ensure that funds collected through these civil penalties are used for the betterment of the East Canton community.
The intent is not simply to collect money and place it into the Village’s general operating budget without a defined purpose.
Under the plan, funds generated through the program will be directed toward initiatives that benefit the residents of East Canton, including improvements to police and public-safety services, additional safety initiatives, and other public-works projects that improve the community.
In other words, the money collected from motorists who violate the law can be reinvested into the community that those motorists are traveling through.
This provides an additional benefit to the residents who have asked us to address speeding and other traffic concerns. Rather than requiring taxpayers to bear the entire cost of additional safety measures, the program allows those who choose to violate the law to contribute toward improvements that benefit the community.
It is important to understand that the Village’s objective is not to maximize the number of citations issued or the amount of money collected.
The objective is to reduce dangerous speeding and improve public safety.
If the program is successful and drivers slow down, fewer citations will be issued—and that would be a positive outcome.
At the same time, when violations do occur, the resulting funds can be put toward improving police services, enhancing public safety, maintaining and improving Village infrastructure, and supporting other projects that directly benefit the people who call East Canton home.
That is a much better use of those funds than asking the residents of this community to shoulder the entire financial burden of addressing a problem that is being caused, in part, by motorists who choose not to obey the law.
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🏪 A CHOICE TO DO BUSINESS IN EAST CANTON
I have also seen comments from individuals online stating that they will no longer do business in East Canton because of the photo-enforcement program.
That is certainly their choice, and everyone has the right to decide where they spend their money. However, it is unfortunate that someone would choose to avoid doing business in our community because they are unwilling to comply with the posted speed limits.
East Canton is a community with businesses, restaurants, families, residents, and people who work hard every day to make this Village a better place. Our expectation of anyone who enters our community is no different from the expectation placed on anyone driving anywhere else: follow the posted speed limit and obey the law.
If someone is unable or unwilling to follow a clearly posted speed limit for the short amount of time it takes to travel through our community, it is difficult to understand why the responsibility for that decision should fall on the residents who live here.
We welcome visitors, customers, workers, and businesses to East Canton. We simply ask that everyone who enters our community respect the same laws and safety standards that our residents are expected to follow.
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🛡️ THIS IS ABOUT SAFETY—NOT REVENUE
Perhaps the most frustrating accusation is that the cameras were installed as a money-making scheme.
If the goal were simply to generate revenue, there would be no reason to establish a 10-mph enforcement threshold or to deploy the system specifically in locations where residents have repeatedly complained about excessive speeding.
The purpose is deterrence.
The goal is for drivers to slow down.
The goal is for residents to feel comfortable allowing their children to play outside, walking through their neighborhoods, riding bicycles, or simply pulling out of their driveways without having vehicles routinely traveling through their neighborhood at dangerous speeds.
And ultimately, the most successful traffic camera would be the one that never has to issue another citation because drivers have learned to slow down.
I also want to make something very clear: the East Canton Police Department does not want to write unnecessary citations. Our officers would much rather see people obey the law than spend their time stopping motorists for violations.
But when repeated complaints, traffic studies, and traditional police enforcement demonstrate that a problem exists, doing nothing is not an acceptable option.
We have an obligation to the people who live here to address problems that affect their safety.
We also have an obligation to use the resources of the Village responsibly. We cannot put an officer at every location, every hour of every day. We cannot ask taxpayers to shoulder the enormous cost of staffing those positions simply because some motorists refuse to obey clearly posted speed limits.
The cameras provide another enforcement tool while allowing our officers to remain available for the many other responsibilities they are called upon to handle every day.
I understand that some people do not like traffic cameras. Reasonable people can disagree about whether photo enforcement is the preferred method of traffic enforcement.
What I cannot accept, however, is misinformation being presented as fact to convince the public that these cameras are something they are not.
They are not Flock cameras.
They are not tracking devices.
They are not a community-wide surveillance system.
They do not issue citations simply because someone is traveling one or two miles per hour over the limit.
They are a traffic enforcement tool designed to address documented speeding problems at specific locations.
Ohio law permits local authorities to use traffic-law photo-monitoring devices for traffic-law enforcement, subject to statutory requirements.
The Village has chosen to use that tool because residents asked us to address a problem, traditional enforcement alone had not solved it, and we have a responsibility to protect the people who live in this community.
To those who disagree with the program, I respect your right to express that disagreement.
But I would ask everyone—whether you live in East Canton or simply travel through it—to base that discussion on facts rather than rumors, social-media posts, or statements from people who have little or no understanding of how the system actually operates.
The residents of East Canton deserve nothing less.
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🇺🇸 AT THE END OF THE DAY, THIS IS VERY SIMPLE:
If you live in East Canton, you should be able to feel safe in your neighborhood.
If you drive through East Canton, you should be expected to obey the posted speed limits.
And if you do obey the law, you have absolutely nothing to fear from these cameras.
Our responsibility is to the people we serve, and we will continue to use every reasonable and lawful tool available to us to make East Canton a safer community.
Respectfully,
Chris Hartlaub
Chief of Police
East Canton Police Department
