The Encinitas City Council voted 4-1 to direct city staff to look into a red-light camera program for the city. The City Council will host a special meeting and look at the staff’s report on possible locations, details on how the data is stored and the costs.
Mayor Bruce Ehlers said the red-light cameras could be part of the solution to the drivers who run red lights in Encinitas.
“The question is: Is it part of the patchwork quilt we’re putting together to try and change driver behavior to try and make our roads safer? And I’m leaning towards yes, it is,” he said.
Deputy Mayor Jim O’Hara voted against the measure, citing civil liberty concerns from an automated camera system.
Red-light cameras have been a key part of the advocacy of Safe Streets Encintitas, which formed in the wake of the death of 12-year-old Emery Chalekian, who was killed while crossing Encinitas Boulevard in April 2025. In the over a year since her death, the group has shown up to several city meetings and pushed for traffic safety measures while wearing yellow shirts reading “In her M-Emery.”
The group had made a plea for red-light cameras to the Encinitas Mobility & Traffic Safety Commission in February. The commission voted 5-1 to direct city staff to determine the locations and number of red-light cameras citywide. In March, the commissioners voted to draft a letter to the City Council in support.
On Wednesday, councilmembers discussed potential benefits of red-light cameras as well as shortcomings.
There were 13 speakers Wednesday night, with many people in favor of the cameras but several arguing they were not effective and voicing privacy concerns.
Emery’s father, John Chalekian, told the City Council Wednesday that the red-light cameras were worth exploring.
“Trust me, there’s no way to value the equity of a human life and the loss of it,” he said.