Lets say, for argument sake, that you were going 70 in a 55.
Example A: you were caught by a patrol car and they gave you a ticket
Example B: you were caught by a camera and they gave you a ticket.
Regardless of your opinions on the speed cameras - there REALLY isn't a big difference between the two. In both cases you were speeding, you were caught and you were given a ticket.
1. It's a violation of the spirit of the relationship between citizens and government. If law enforcement was able to enforce every transgression against their regulations in this way, the average citizen would be in jail.
2. These have created a dual system where the same violation is treated differently. Why? Because they have to. If it was a criminal violation to be caught with a speed camera, it violates the 6th Amendment's right to face your accuser.
3. There are many reasons that a person may speed. At times, it is actually safer to increase your speed to allow for other traffic to merge, or to avoid an accident. A camera cannot capture the context of this.
4. Speed cameras are for revenue generation, not safety.