Well folks, if you live in or travel in the Santa Ana area of California, be aware that you’re going to be at risk for getting hit with red light camera fees again.

Seems that a lot of the tickets being issued from area cameras were getting thrown out after a less than publicized grace period–apparently, Santa Ana cops forgot to TELL PEOPLE they were going to be on red light camera.  Dig the word:

The city quietly established a temporary grace period for all of its red-light cameras late last month. It was meant to address what had become a common line of defense from people caught running red on tape: that the city had failed to give proper notice that cameras were in use.  An Orange County court commissioner had dismissed dozens of red-light tickets from Santa Ana because of that. City officials decided to give a 30-day warning period for each of its 20 red-light camera installations, rather than continue fighting its case in court.

Whoopsie doodle, Santa Ana commissioners–guess you can’t just spring cameras on people and expect to reap huge windfalls of cash from unsuspecting minor criminals.  But the grace period is over, folks, so keep your eyes front if you’re in Santa Ana, especially around the traffic signals.