Press release: Sustain Charlotte calls on city to bring back red-light cameras to save lives
CHARLOTTE — Following the death of 25-year-old Lance Sotelo, who was killed when a driver ran a red light on The Plaza, Sustain Charlotte is calling on the City of Charlotte to adopt a red-light camera ordinance to prevent future tragedies and improve intersection safety.
In a new blog post published this week, Sustain Charlotte outlines how red-light running is a widespread and dangerous problem on Charlotte-area streets. According to North Carolina’s Vision Zero Safety Dashboard, between 2019 and October 2025 there were more than 3,000 intersection-related crashes in Mecklenburg County in which disregarding a traffic signal was identified as the primary contributing factor, involving nearly 9,000 people.
“Charlotte already knows where and how people are being seriously injured and killed on our streets,” said Shannon Binns, founder and executive director of Sustain Charlotte. “Red-light running is a documented and persistent danger at signalized intersections, and red-light cameras are one of the most effective tools we have to address it. With the legal barriers now clarified, the question is no longer whether we can act — it’s whether we will.”
Charlotte previously operated red-light cameras but ended the program after court rulings required most citation revenue to be directed to public schools, making it difficult for cities to recover operating costs. A 2024 North Carolina Supreme Court ruling clarified that municipalities may recover the reasonable costs of operating red-light camera programs, with remaining funds directed to public schools — removing the primary barrier that led Charlotte to discontinue its program.
Council Member JD Mazuera Arias, who knew Lance, voiced his support for action:
“Lance Sotelo’s death was heartbreaking and it was preventable. We know that red-light running and unsafe intersection design lead to the most severe and deadly crashes on our streets. Red-light cameras are a proven safety tool, and with the recent court ruling, Charlotte now has a clear path to use them responsibly to save lives. We owe it to Lance, and to every neighbor who uses our streets, to act.”
Sustain Charlotte is urging City Council to:
- Adopt a red-light camera ordinance in compliance with state law
- Design the program to recover operating costsDirect remaining revenue to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, as required
- Deploy cameras strategically at high-injury intersections as part of a broader safety strategy