Dupage Policy Journal

Illinois state Rep. Deanne Mazzochi (R-Elmhurst) is grateful a "justifiably vilified camera" will be removed, but believes the process should have started long ago.

She has pressed the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) to remove red light cameras tied to corruption for years.

IDOT revoked the operating permits for the red light camera at the intersection of Illinois 83 and 22nd Street near the Oakbrook Mall, ABC 7 Chicago reported. IDOT claimed the permits were revoked because the village of Oakbrook Terrace failed to submit the proper paperwork. But, the former Oakbrook Terrace mayor is accused of accepting bribes from the camera company.

"This move comes just a short while after former Mayor Ragucci was indicted by the feds for bribery associated with those very cameras, yet IDOT claims they are revoking the permit over a paperwork issue – an issue that IDOT has not enforced previously and has not invoked in any other red light camera case," Mazzochi said in a recent Facebook post.

Tony Ragucci, former Oakbrook Terrace mayor, faces federal criminal charges, according to FOX 23 Chicago. He is accused of secretly accepting thousands of dollars in exchange for renewing a contract with SafeSpeed, a red light camera company. The indictment noted the bribery scheme lasted until September 2019, when federal agents searched Ragucci's home and found $60,000 in cash.

"IDOT expects us to believe that it is just a coincidence that the bureaucracy has belatedly reviewed the paperwork for compliance," Mazzochi said in a statement. "In reality, given the recent criminal charges filed by the federal authorities against the former mayor of Oakbrook Terrace involving this very camera, this has become a political embarrassment for IDOT and Gov. [J.B.] Pritzker (D-Ill.), who has let this sit for years."

Former Crestwood Mayor Louis Presta and the late state Sen. Martin Sandoval (D-Chicago) were also federally charged in connection to investigations involving SafeSpeed, FOX 23 Chicago reported. 

"It is baffling that IDOT cannot acknowledge the real reason why this camera should have been scrutinized and removed long ago: because it was specifically mentioned in a federal indictment involving red light camera public corruption for Democratic Sen. Marty Sandoval," Mazzochi said. She added that she has asked IDOT on several occasions to conduct a review of the camera, since it could also be to blame for an increase in the number of accidents in the area.

Mazzochi last July spoke about her efforts to remove suburban red light cameras, which she said were "plagued with corruption." She introduced legislation that would help drivers fight tickets given in a red light camera zone.

"If IDOT won't remove these revenue-grabbing red light cameras, then you should at least be empowered to fight back," Mazzochi said on Facebook. "State law currently limits the defenses drivers can raise to red light cameras, making them practically impossible to challenge. My latest bill, HB4102, will explicitly allow members of the public given red light camera citations the right to challenge the tickets in court if the cameras in question are 'associated with civil or criminal corruption charges.' I believe the role of government should be to empower and support its citizens, not the other way around."

Mazzochi filed House Bill 4102 in June 2021. The bill has not advanced out of the House despite more than 15 Republican representatives signing on as co-sponsors, according to the General Assembly website.