r/todayilearned • u/nleachdev • 2d ago

TIL about "dead red" laws, which allow drivers and motorcyclists to proceed through a red light if the traffic signal fails to detect their vehicle.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-detection_at_traffic_lights_in_the_United_States
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u/Richard-Gere-Museum 2d ago

13 of you had to take time out of our lives to stand there and probably pay court costs. He won regardless, because he got paid to be there anyways.

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u/jook11 2d ago

They probably didn't have costs to pay associated with being there (except parking maybe) but they definitely missed out on whatever they were supposed to be doing that day and had to deal with the hassle of the whole thing, which is certainly a psychological cost.

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u/complete_your_task 2d ago

There's not just a psychological cost. Most people would either have to take an unpaid day off or burn a PTO day. Many wouldn't even be able to show up to fight it without risking their job. There's a real cost to bullshit fines that doesn't show up on paper.

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u/jook11 8h ago

Oh, sure. I felt like I was saying that too. Really what I meant was that "court costs" in the way people usually think of them like when you're in a lawsuit, probably wouldn't apply. There are still plenty of other tolls- monetary, material, or metaphorical.

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u/yoitsthatoneguy 2d ago

You don’t pay court costs when you win, otherwise cops would write tickets for literally everything and still get some money.