Police ‘Aggressively’ Watching For Speed Camera Vandalism

The call came in at 1:25 p.m. on Tuesday.

According to scanner traffic, an unidentified commercial vehicle was near a batch of Montgomery County speed cameras in the 5800 block of Grosvenor Lane. A case of vandalism, a common incident when it comes to the county’s nearly 75 fixed pole cameras, was suspected.

In this case, an officer responded to the scene and noticed no sign of vandalism, said Officer Janelle Smith, a police spokeswoman. She said she didn’t know why a piece at the base of the camera was missing and the wiring was exposed.

She did say that acts of vandalism to county speed cameras occur a few times a month, ranging from graffiti to more destructive acts.

MCPD’s Traffic Division is responsible for monitoring the cameras, and has apparently increased its efforts to stop those who would damage the equipment.

“The program makes every effort possible to reduce the risk of vandalism and aggressively works to catch individuals who are at fault so they may be prosecuted and pay for their destructive behavior,” Smith said.

In June, a Howard County man took out his frustration over a number of speed camera citations by using a slingshot to fire marbles at a mobile camera unit.

A nearby homeowner walking by the Grosvenor Lane cameras on Tuesday said he saw the police stop to check the cameras and easily deduced why.

The cameras “flash every night,” he said. “They get a lot of people.”