Los dispositivos de monitoreo GPS, ademas de decirte donde te ubicas y hacia donde vas, pueden también ayudarte a evadir una multa por exceso de velocidad.

El joven Shaun Malone de California, actualmente se encuentra en un litigio contra el Estado argumentando que su sistema de rastreo satelital muestra que la “pistola-radar” del oficial que le levanto la multa está equivocada.
Sus padres habian instalado este sistema en el vehículo para monitorear precisamente que no se excediera de velocidad, de hecho lo habían castigado ya varias veces por exceder las 70 mph. Pero en esta ocasión el log del sistema indica que iba por debajo de la velocidad permitida.

Aun se tiene que decidir si el sistema GPS puede ser utilizado como prueba, pero el abuelo del joven (que da la casualidad que es un ex-sheriff del condado) está listo para seguir presionando si lo desechan como evidencia.

Estos sistemas se están utilizando cada vez mas por los padres para mantener un registro de las actividades de sus hijos en los vehículos, ya sea como ayuda en situaciones de emergencia o como vigilancia. Existen dispositivos que registran la posición y velocidad, otros mas sofisticados que permiten interactuar con el vehículo, apagándolo e incluso escuchar lo que se está hablando en el interior del auto.

Malone, a 17-year-old who was clocked doing 62 MPH in a 45 MPH zone on July 4 of this year, has more than just a GPS on his side. As the AP reports, his stepfather Roger Rude is a retired sheriff, and is pushing Malone to fight the ticket. (As an aside, how awesome would it be to be Sherriff Rude?)

Ironically, Malone’s parents had the GPS system installed in order to track the whereabouts and speed of their son, whom they readily admit has a lead foot. In fact, he has already been grounded for having gone over 70 MPH after the GPS was installed. Nevertheless, Malone’s parents say that the data on the day in question shows that their son was not speeding in the vicinity of where the ticket was issued.

While many GPS systems don’t log travel details extensively enough to be used as a defense against a moving violation, Malone’s car was outfitted with a device that could do just that. According to Rude, all recorded plots on Malone’s route show him to be driving under the speed limit. At the same time, Rude says, GPS-systems are clearly more reliable than radar systems, which, while good, are “not an infallible tool” and are subject to human error.

A Sonoma County traffic commissioner has to decide whether the GPS system can be accepted as a basis to challenge the ticket, but ex-sheriff Rude is prepared to push his case in court in the event of an unhappy outcome.

The debate is likely to come down to how often the GPS device calculated and reported ground speed. Petaluma police lieutenant John Edwards told the AP that since GPS is satellite-based, there’s a delay involved, and that Malone may have sped up and slowed down in the window between measurements, which could be as long as 60 seconds.

GPS tracking systems like the one in Malone’s car are becoming an increasingly popular way for parents to keep tabs on their kids, an outgrowth of the initial use of such devices in car fleets and trucking. Many consumer-oriented GPS navigation systems also have these capabilities, but Malone’s was hardcore: the system would even e-mail his parents in the event that he drove too fast.