OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — This year, 29,306 citations for speeding in school zones have been given out in Osceola County with the help of cameras designed to detect speeding in school zones. Though as of this week, Oceola County Sheriff’s Office officials said there may be an issue about where these 32-school zone speed enforcement cameras are placed.

What You Need To Know

The Osceola County Sheriff’s Office has temporarily stopped using cameras in school zones to detect speeding because of confusion over state statutory language

Osceola County Sheriff’s deputies are physically enforcing the speed limit in school zones until the confusion is resolved

This year, 29,306 citations for speeding in school zones have been given out in Osceola County with the help of cameras designed to detect speeding in school zones

Verra Mobility is the company that implemented the cameras

The Florida Department of Transportation statute’s language on where the speed cameras are placed is specifically what led Osceola County Sheriff Chris Blackmon and his agency to put a halt to using the school zone speed cameras until the confusion is cleared.

“It was brought to the actual sheriff’s office attention last week about the placement of the cameras, whether or not they needed to be within the school zone, or they could be outside the schools as they’re placed within Osceola County. There’s 32 cameras placed here and across the county. They’re all outside of the school zone,” Osceola County Sheriff’s Office Captain Kim Montes said.

“We’ve seeked guidance from different entities to try and get a legal opinion on whether or not we can move forward or we need to take a pause because the clarification was not there last Thursday, the Sheriff decided, let’s just pause on verifying any new violations,” Montes said.

The language of FDOT’s School Zone Speed Detection System Placement and Installation Specifications, sections 4.6 and 4.7, states that the cameras “shall be installed 100 feet prior to the furthest most upstream point of the existing S1-1 school zone warning sign.”

Their revised statute also said, “in order to capture a photograph or video of the school zone flashing beacons to verify the speed limit in force at the time of violation, a supplemental device can be installed outside the school zone as a standalone structure or to be attached to the back of the Speed Limit Photo Enforced sign assembly.”

FDOT did not provide an interpretation of the language when requested for this story.

Osceola County Sheriff’s Office deputies were responsible for verifying that a violation occurred in order for the civil citation to be issued after the camera took an image of a car that was speeding. Verra Mobility is the company that implemented the cameras.

In a statement, a spokesperson with Verra Mobility said, “We collaborated with Osceola County on camera locations and remain confident that the placement complies with statutory requirements, capturing violations that occur within the designated school zone. We respect the County’s decision to temporarily pause enforcement and thoroughly review the matter; we will continue to work with the County during this process.”

In the meantime, Osceola County Sheriff’s deputies are physically enforcing the speed limit in school zones until the confusion is resolved.

“I think we want people to understand why this is sorted out. Again, flashing lights have been in school areas for decades, and we all know what they mean. They need to slow down so that when kids are crossing, kids can be unpredictable, that it’s the safety for the kids. That has not changed. That has not changed before these cameras were installed,” Captain Montes said. “Right now, while we’re in this kind of limbo, it’s not changed. You can still be issued a ticket for running too fast through these school zones.”

“Right now, it’s just going to actually be done by a deputy,” Montes said.