Raleigh is ending its red-light camera program after two decades of operation. The News and Observer has the story here. Red-light camera programs across North Carolina have steadily folded following court rulings that their funding model (in which the camera vendor is paid more than 10 percent of the net proceeds of fines) runs afoul of the fines and forfeiture clause of the state constitution.
Of course, the city still wants people to stop at red lights. Last year, it installed reflective backplates, a border on traffic signals to make them stand out, at red-light-camera-intersection signals.
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Lost your license? Print a temporary copy at Harris Teeter! NC DMV has installed self service kiosks at three North Carolina Harris Teeters (one in Charlotte, one in Fayetteville, and one in Raleigh) where customers may complete transactions that don’t require an office visit. The News and Observer has the story here. The kiosk transactions mirror those that a person can complete online, but also include the ability to print a temporary copy of one’s driver’s license or identification card, which can’t be done at home.
Driverless taxis debut in Los Angeles. NPR reports that Waymo rolled out about 50 robotaxis in Los Angeles this week noting that “supporters hope the ride . . . won’t be as bumpy as it’s been in other parts of the state.” As to the bumps, CBS News reported last fall that the launch of driverless taxis in San Franscisco “has been plagued by problems,” as the cars have reportedly driven into fire-fighting and active crime scenes, caused construction delays, and impeded ambulances.
Children escape from mental health hospital in Raleigh. WRAL reports that, over the span of a few days, seven children left Holly Hill Children’s Hospital without authorization. Three males left on Sunday and were found in Cary. On Tuesday, five juveniles (including one of the Sunday escapees) again left the facility. Two have been found. According to WRAL, the state Department of Health and Human Services put Holly Hill under “‘immediate jeopardy’” in 2021 based on deficiencies that included conditions that allowed two patients to escape by jumping over a fence.
Duplin County children hospitalized after ingesting suspected fentanyl at daycare. When my children were in daycare, I recall workers’ vigilance to shield allergic children from peanut butter and gluten. I never even considered the little ones might be exposed to something like fentanyl. Yet WITN news reports this week that may have happened to two children cared for at a Kenansville daycare. The children became unresponsive after reportedly eating what they thought was candy provided by a day care employee. The children were treated at ECU Health Duplin Hospital and subsequently released. Their parents turned over what was left of the “candy,” which authorities say may have been fentanyl pills. No charges have been filed, and the investigation is ongoing.
A civility tour. United States Supreme Court Justices Barrett and Sotomayor are joining forces to promote civility. The Associated Press reports that the justices, who diverge ideologically, “have teamed up to promote the art of disagreeing without being nasty about it.” The two have made two recent joint appearances promoting civil debate at a time when the United States Supreme Court’s approval rate is “hovering near record lows.” Barrett spoke Tuesday in Washington, saying that she did not think any of the justices had a “‘my way or the highway’ attitude.” Sotomayor said last month that there were many things justices could do to “bring the temperature down” and function together as a group to “getting something done that has a benefit in the law.”
The European Parliament adopts stringent regulations for AI. Lawyers and judges across the globe are keenly interested in the effect artificial intelligence is having – and will have in the future – on surveillance, privacy, intellectual property, the integrity of evidence, and the practice of law itself. European lawmakers took sweeping action this week to regulate AI, approving comprehensive legislation that sets out rules for developers and places restrictions on the use of AI technology. The Wall Street Journal has the story here. Among the prohibitions adopted by the European Parliament is a ban on the use of “emotion-recognition AI” in schools and workplaces and on untargeted scraping of images for facial-recognition databases. The law also requires clear labeling of deepfakes, which are AI generated images that might otherwise appear to be authentic.
With that, the Criminal Law Blog signs off for the week. We’ll be back next week with more legal analysis and related fodder. Have a nice weekend.