Keeping up with the Kubosh

Houston's red light cameras not about to stop: Despite vote, could be up tillMarch 15 as crusader steps back

Getting rid of the voted-down red light cameras is anything but simple.
Are the red light cameras staying till March?
Photo by Barbara Kuntz

Houston's red light cameras are overstaying their welcome, but that's not going to stop activists from opposing the continued issuing of citations after Houstonians voted to oust the robot photographers last week.

"The city signed a bad contract," says anti-red-light-camera campaign manager Philip Owens, who presented his case at a Tuesday morning meeting of City Council. Houston's deal with Arizona-based American Traffic Solutions doesn't terminate until May of 2014, and because of a 120-day termination notice contractual clause, the city doesn't want to flick the switch to turn off the cams until March 15, 2011.

In the interim, the city is still dispersing traffic tickets to the speedy drivers who fall under the judgmental cameras' watch and maintaining they must be paid, much to Owens & Co.'s chagrin.

"There were three other speakers, all asking that the cameras be taken down immediately," Owens tells CultureMap. He describes the council's response as largely supportive, with Jolanda Jones, C.O. Bradford, Ed Gonzalez and Melissa Noriega among those echoing his campaign's movement.

"We trust City Council," Owens says, "but the voters are going to hold them accountable."

Randall Kallinen, an activist and civil rights attorney also put in his two cents, expressing willingness to file a class action lawsuit if the city continues to dole out tickets. That stance echoes the cause's original mastermind, Paul Kubosh, who's backing down from his formerly virulent stance and letting the city sort out a potential suit with ATS.

"What it comes down to is, 'How much of Kubosh can you stand?,' " he says. "I think we made our point. This thing's over — they're going to take down the cameras and if they still want to ticket people after this vote, they've go to deal with that at the ballot box."

Why the sudden back down?

"I got real angry, and a lot of the media published that," Kubosh says. "I like to think that a lot of people felt the way I did. It's still very crazy to me." Kubosh was not present at today's council meeting.

Owens, the heir apparent to the Kubosh cause, is awaiting the certification of the Election Day results on Nov. 15 before he moves forward.

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Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

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Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”