{"id":26712,"date":"2025-10-30T16:06:46","date_gmt":"2025-10-30T16:06:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/26712\/"},"modified":"2025-10-30T16:06:46","modified_gmt":"2025-10-30T16:06:46","slug":"drivers-to-get-refunds-after-hillsborough-county-school-zone-cameras-mistake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/26712\/","title":{"rendered":"Drivers to get refunds after Hillsborough County school zone camera&#8217;s mistake"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. \u2014 Some drivers in Citrus Park say they were ticketed in error by school zone speed cameras. The Hillsborough County Sheriff\u2019s Office confirmed Wednesday that some of those citations were mistakenly issued near the intersection of Gunn Highway and Ehrlich Road.<\/p>\n<p>Mike Gaydos, whose family often travels through the school zone, says both his wife and daughter were ticketed.<\/p>\n<p>WATCH: Drivers to get refunds after Hillsborough County school zone camera&#8217;s mistake<\/p>\n<p>Drivers to get refunds after Hillsborough County school zone camera&#8217;s mistake<\/p>\n<p>He agrees with the goal of the school zone speed camera program, slowing down drivers in school zones, but believes thousands of people may have been cited unfairly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t mind paying if I\u2019m in the wrong or my wife is in the wrong,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>In his wife\u2019s case, the camera clocked her going 38 miles per hour through the zone on Monday, Oct. 13 at 2:22 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>Even though Hillsborough\u2019s school zone cameras <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tampabay28.com\/news\/region-hillsborough\/hillsborough-county-cameras-will-soon-target-speeders-throughout-the-school-day\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">now operate throughout the entire school day<\/a>, drivers must obey two different speed limits depending on the time. It\u2019s 20 miles per hour during drop-off and pick-up times and when lights are flashing. The normal speed limit, 45 miles per hour, applies when they\u2019re not.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy wife was going 38 in a 45. No yellow lights on,\u201d Gaydos said.<\/p>\n<p>            <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761840405_759_\" alt=\"1.jpg\"  width=\"1280\" height=\"800\"\/><\/p>\n<p>SpeedViolation.com<\/p>\n<p>Still, she received a ticket. Tampa Bay 28 confirmed at least two other drivers got similar tickets that they believe were erroneous.<\/p>\n<p>Gaydos contacted the sheriff\u2019s office, and so did Tampa Bay 28.<\/p>\n<p>On Wednesday, the Hillsborough County Sheriff\u2019s Office confirmed citations were mistakenly issued.<\/p>\n<p>In a statement, the agency said anyone who received a violation between 1:26 p.m. and 2:56 p.m. on Mondays near Citrus Park Elementary, Plato Academy, or Sgt. Smith Middle School will get a dismissal letter or refund.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s the latest hiccup in the rollout of Hillsborough County\u2019s new school zone speed cameras, a program <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tampabay28.com\/news\/state\/theres-no-point-in-fighting-drivers-who-appeal-school-speed-zone-camera-fines-almost-guaranteed-to-lose\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">that\u2019s been controversial since its launch<\/a>. As Tampa Bay 28 has reported for months, the cameras have created confusion about when enforcement is active and what speeds apply.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne shouldn\u2019t have to guess or be baffled by what\u2019s right and what\u2019s wrong,\u201d one frustrated driver said in a previous interview with investigative reporter Katie LaGrone.<\/p>\n<p>For Gaydos, the ticket wasn\u2019t just frustrating. It added more stress to an already difficult time. His wife is currently battling Stage IV cancer, and he spends much of his time driving with her to and from Moffitt Cancer Center.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy life, as you can see, I was injured, and the rest of the time I spend going to Moffitt,\u201d Gaydos said.<\/p>\n<p>He hopes his next trip there won\u2019t come with any extra headaches.<\/p>\n<p>A sheriff\u2019s office spokesperson told Tampa Bay 28 that refunds will be issued automatically. There\u2019s no need to apply. Anyone who hasn\u2019t yet paid a ticket that was issued in error will soon receive a letter of dismissal in the mail.<\/p>\n<p>Share Your Story with Chad<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mediaassets.abcactionnews.com\/image\/ContactBanners\/ChadMills.png\"\/><br \/>Chad Mills calls Polk County home and has witnessed the area\u2019s growth firsthand. He keeps his eye on the City of Lakeland, our agriculture community, and helping you navigate everyday expenses. Use the form below to share your story ideas with Chad.<br \/>.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mediaassets.abcactionnews.com\/image\/VideoModule\/Trending_Video_TampaBay28.png\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Tampa Bay locals stranded as Hurricane Melissa ravages Jamaica<\/p>\n<p>Polk County woman on honeymoon and Tampa restaurant owner among those unable to evacuate as catastrophic hurricane makes landfall with 185 mph winds.<\/p>\n<p>Locals stranded as Hurricane Melissa slams Jamaica<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. \u2014 Some drivers in Citrus Park say they were ticketed in error by school zone&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":26713,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[205,20057,20058,20059,20060,20061,20062,276,18311,20063,135,137,136],"class_list":["post-26712","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-abc-action-news","tag-citation","tag-citrus-park","tag-ehrlich-road","tag-elementary","tag-error","tag-gunn-highway","tag-hillsborough-county","tag-hillsborough-county-sheriffs-office","tag-operation-safe-passage","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26712","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26712"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26712\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}