Johnson County considers buying second speed trailer, but one supervisor concerned

IOWA CITY — Officials with Johnson County Sheriff's Office are looking to buy the components for a second speed trailer that officials say will help thwart speeding and increase neighborhood safety.

However, the manner in which the roughly $10,000 in equipment was budgeted, and the fact that the new speed sign would have the ability to take pictures, has one supervisor concerned.

Major Steve Dolezal detailed the project during the Johnson County Board of Supervisors' Wednesday work session, which includes buying the equipment to attach to an existing trailer that doesn't currently have working components. Buying a brand-new speed trailer would cost more than $20,000, he said.

Dolezal said the new trailer will be a useful tool for notifying motorists of area speed limits and help reduce speeding in identified areas such as school zones.

'It's really a good proactive way for us to get out and have people slow down without writing tickets,' he said.

The speed trailer will have an attached camera, which Dolezal said could be programmed to take a photograph of any vehicle driving at extreme speeds, such as 60 miles per hour in a 25 mph zone.

"I do think the public should have had an opportunity to talk about whether they want Johnson County to photograph them."

- Janelle Rettig

Johnson County supervisor

That photo would not be used to write a citation and the clarity would likely not even pick up license plate information, but rather it could help identify vehicles that are habitually speeding.

Supervisor Janelle Rettig said she was very opposed to the idea of having a camera on the speed trailer, citing concerns that it is a step closer to implementing traffic cameras, such as the controversial cameras in Cedar Rapids.

'I think this is an escalation of surveilling private citizens by photographing them,' she said.

The rest of the board did not share Rettig's sentiment.

'I don't look at this as some strange surveillance of individuals by any means,' Supervisor Terrence Neuzil said.

Iowa City Sgt. Scott Gaarde said the Iowa City Police Department has one speed trailer, but since traffic cameras are banned in the city, it is used as a deterrent to potential speeding.

Rettig also expressed concern that the line item for the speed trailer equipment was listed as a jail surveillance expense.

However, Dolezal said not all department purchases have specific line items dedicated to them, and oftentimes officials have to 'fit a square peg into a round hole' by adding the purchase in the most appropriate spot.

'Not all expenditures fit nice and neatly into a line item, especially if they're one time only or rare expenditures,' Supervisor Mike Carberry added.

While the county Board of Supervisors approves department budgets on an annual basis, each department has the flexibility to adjust their individual budgets, as long as they keep with the bottom line, Neuzil said.

That said, Rettig argued that such a line item should have been made available for public comment at the time of budgeting.

'I think it is wrong to hide this under jail surveillance, and I do think the public should have had an opportunity to talk about whether they want Johnson County to photograph them,' she said.

As with the camera discussion, the remainder of the board did not agree.

'I don't see where anybody in the sheriff's office was trying to hide anything,' Supervisor Rod Sullivan said.

The board will vote on the equipment purchase at Thursday's 9 a.m. formal meeting.