Failure to Yield to an Emergency Vehicle

[3rdtimesacharm]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? WA

I received a ticket this morning for $1,062 in Washington state for Failure to Yield to an Emergency Vehicle.

Pulled over by a motorcycle officer, I was a little surprised when he told me what he was pulling me over for. Wish I could draw a diagram; I'll try to describe what happened instead.

I was getting ready to pull out of a gas station, waiting to turn right onto a busy, 4- lane arterial. I was approximately 25-30 yards from a busy intersection. As soon as I executed my right turn, I saw an ambulance on the opposite side of this intersection.

I was traveling in the inside lane and immediately tried to move to the right but couldn't, as other vehicles were in the way. My front wheels were now in the intersection and the ambulance was no longer moving forward in the direction towards me, but was now moving into the turn lane to make a left-hand turn across the front of me. With 3 kids in car seats in my vehicle, I had only a second to make a decision. I could brake hard in the intersection itself and stop there, or hit the gas, go through the intersection, and pull over to the curb on the other side of it.

As you may have guessed, I chose the latter. I did tell the officer that I couldn't pull over in the intersection, that it was too dangerous, especially with kids in the car.

He told me he "could see that ambulance clear down the road at Home Depot". (A location approximately 1/2 mile away from the intersection). I then explained that I didn't doubt he COULD see it from that far away, but that I was getting gas and then trying to get out of a parking lot so I didn't see it or even hear it until I pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road.

I told him I immediately tried to get over to the right and couldn't. I told him I made that decision to NOT stop in the intersection bc it was dangerous. I said "You had to have seen me try and get over if you were behind me. You had to have known I couldn't get over." He didn't answer.

Now I have a ticket for over $1,000. So here's my question. What are the odds I can contest this and win? How can I prove my "conduct was necessary to avoid harm" in a manner that will meet the legal standard?

Since this was a VERY subjective call on the officer's part (he thought I was on the road the entire time and had ample time to pull-over), does this very subjectivity come into play here?

Thanks for any advice you have. $1,000 is a TON of money to me and I have no idea how I will pay this ticket. I can't even afford school supplies for my kids right now.What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

 

[The Occultist]

If you go into court with an otherwise clean driving record and explain what happened, while showing utter remorse over how things transpired, and your words happen to fall on a sympathetic ear, it is possible that you may see some form of leniency from the court.

Since this was a VERY subjective call on the officer's part (he thought I was on the road the entire time and had ample time to pull-over), does this very subjectivity come into play here?

This is a good question, and one that has two opposing answers. One school of thought is that the officer is an expert witness on behalf of the state. This witness will also be deemed to be unbiased, meaning, outside of the infraction itself, he has no reason to cite you. This means that his subjectivity will likely be taken as fact.

The second school of thought is that if you put the officer on the stand and can ask that right questions and make the right statements to effectively cast doubt on the officer's credibility, then perhaps any statement of "fact" will not be taken so seriously.

Many on this board, including myself, admittedly, will go with the former option.

Thanks for any advice you have. $1,000 is a TON of money to me and I have no idea how I will pay this ticket. I can't even afford school supplies for my kids right now.What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

If my theory of leniency pans out, then you may see yourself with a reduced fine. If you end up with the full fine (or the reduced fine is still an amount you cannot truly afford), then discuss this with the court. Often times, they are more than willing to setup a payment plan.

My advice is to seek legal representation from a traffic attorney. A local attorney knows best what the courts want to hear (the best ones will be have an office across the street from the courthouse), and as such present the highest potential for yielding the most favorable results. Many attorneys will offer free/cheap consultations, so you should take advantage of this and sit down with a couple to see what insight they may have to offer.

 

[Zigner]

You turned right across 3 lanes of traffic and ended up in the left lane?

I think you have very little chance of beating this. You need to look BOTH directions when you enter the roadway. If you were less than 100' from the intersection, you should have EASILY seen the ambulance.

 

[racer72]

Best option I see for this is asking for a deferral, pay the fine and get no more tickets for a year. Do this and the ticket goes away. Get another and both hit your driving record at the same time plus you get the double whammy at your next insurance renewal period. The court will make payment arrangements if you can't pay in full at that time.

The stand point of most drivers of emergency vehicles is for other traffic move to the right but if they can't, stop and let them drive around you. Based on your post, your right turn out of the gas station was illegal too. Any right turn in the state of Washington requires the driver to turn into the immediate right lane of traffic then move to the left when traffic is clear. If you had done this, there would not have been an issue of pulling to the right.

 

[LSCAP]

Generally a vehicle in the intersection has the right of way over a vehicle entering the intersection.

Stopping in the middle of the intersection could completely obstruct the vehicle (ambulance) entering the intersection.

I’m unable to look up previous dispositions of this sort for your state. ( At the moment, I’m in the middle of an electrical storm) And the boss- uh wife- is yelling at me to get off the computer but,

In my state, NC, An ambulance entered the intersection After the other car, and they had an accident. The court ruled the ambulance in the wrong.

If so, in your state, your best defense is to explain as you did in your post, and that you were already in the intersection and had no where to go, so you rushed through and stopped on the side of the road.

 

[Zigner]

Generally a vehicle in the intersection has the right of way over a vehicle entering the intersection.

Stopping in the middle of the intersection could completely obstruct the vehicle (ambulance) entering the intersection.

I’m unable to look up previous dispositions of this sort for your state. ( At the moment, I’m in the middle of an electrical storm) And the boss- uh wife- is yelling at me to get off the computer but,

In my state, NC, An ambulance entered the intersection After the other car, and they had an accident. The court ruled the ambulance in the wrong.

If so, in your state, your best defense is to explain as you did in your post, and that you were already in the intersection and had no where to go, so you rushed through and stopped on the side of the road.

LSCAP - our OP had PLENTY of opportunity to stop BEFORE she even got to the intersection.

 

[justalayman]

and it was not a matter of an accident. The police claimed the OP should have been aware of the ambo before even pulling onto the road and even after that, not yielding to the ambo.

Big difference.

I'm guessing this is the statute charged:

RCW 46.61.210
Operation of vehicles on approach of emergency vehicles.

(1) Upon the immediate approach of an authorized emergency vehicle making use of audible and visual signals meeting the requirements of RCW 46.37.190, or of a police vehicle properly and lawfully making use of an audible signal only the driver of every other vehicle shall yield the right-of-way and shall immediately drive to a position parallel to, and as close as possible to, the right-hand edge or curb of the roadway clear of any intersection and shall stop and remain in such position until the authorized emergency vehicle has passed, except when otherwise directed by a police officer.

(2) This section shall not operate to relieve the driver of an authorized emergency vehicle from the duty to drive with due regard for the safety of all persons using the highway.


[1965 ex.s. c 155 § 32.]

 

[LSCAP]

Sorry about the caps, we’ve lost our bold lettering stuff.

I guess I just read it differently,

The op said, “I saw an ambulance on the OPPOSITE SIDE OF THIS INTERSECTION.”

apparently going the other way, not necessarily a need to move to the right.
AND, “
“MY FRONT WHEELS WERE NOW IN THE INTERSECTION and the ambulance was no longer moving forward in the direction towards me, BUT WAS NOW MOVING INTO the turn lane to make a left-hand turn across the front of me.”
AND
“I COULD BRAKE HARD IN THE INTERSECTION AND STOP THEREor hit the gas, go through the intersection, and pull over to the curb on the other side of it.”

stopping IN the intersection could be the worse thing to do.

I still think the op tells it like the original post and emphasize that you were ALREADY IN THE INTERSECTION and had no where to go, so you rushed through and stopped on the side of the road.

 

[Zigner]

I still think the op tells it like the original post and emphasize that you were ALREADY IN THE INTERSECTION and had no where to go, so you rushed through and stopped on the side of the road.

OP made an illegal turn in the first place. Then, had a good distance in which to see the oncoming ambulance, but instead decided to accelerate.

I really think you're misunderstanding this one...

 

[3rdtimesacharm]

Thank you for your responses.

I DID, in fact, make an illegal right-hand turn out of the parking lot and certainly deserve a ticket for that. Had I turned into the lane closest to me, none of this would have happened. That being said...

I couldn't see the ambulance. It was across the intersection and not in the turning lane at that point (bc as I entered the intersection, I saw it move into the left-hand turn lane).

From my vantage point, I saw nothing, pulled (illegally) into the inside lane, and immediately saw the ambo approaching. I immediately tried to pull over to the curb and couldn't. Cars were there. (Which was why I made the illegal turn into the inside lane in the first place).

At this point, I was almost completely in the intersection and had to make that judgment call: brake hard and stop in the intersection or speed through and pull over. Meanwhile, I can now see the ambo in the turning lane, obviously almost ready to turn left across me.

I hit the gas, went through the intersection, and immediately pulled into the right lane, in case the ambo was executing a U-turn. Shortly thereafter, the motorcycle officer pulled me over.

Last point: the gas station parking lot entrance/exit that I was pulling out of, is located 25 yards from the intersection. I checked last night. It's really close. I thought if I took a pic to court, perhaps the judge would see how all of this really could happen so quickly, and how impossible it would have been to actually see the ambo from my vantage point (despite how close I was).

Thanks again to all who have taken the time to respond. It really is appreciated. I'll wait to see if my further clarification here garners any additional response and then I guess I'll have to decide if I want representation or not.

 

[Zigner]

I DID, in fact, make an illegal right-hand turn out of the parking lot and certainly deserve a ticket for that. Had I turned into the lane closest to me, none of this would have happened. That being said...

I couldn't see the ambulance. It was across the intersection and not in the turning lane at that point (bc as I entered the intersection, I saw it move into the left-hand turn lane).

From my vantage point, I saw nothing, pulled (illegally) into the inside lane, and immediately saw the ambo approaching. I immediately tried to pull over to the curb and couldn't. Cars were there. (Which was why I made the illegal turn into the inside lane in the first place).

At this point, I was almost completely in the intersection and had to make that judgment call: brake hard and stop in the intersection or speed through and pull over. Meanwhile, I can now see the ambo in the turning lane, obviously almost ready to turn left across me.

I hit the gas, went through the intersection, and immediately pulled into the right lane, in case the ambo was executing a U-turn. Shortly thereafter, the motorcycle officer pulled me over.

Last point: the gas station parking lot entrance/exit that I was pulling out of, is located 25 yards from the intersection. I checked last night. It's really close. I thought if I took a pic to court, perhaps the judge would see how all of this really could happen so quickly, and how impossible it would have been to actually see the ambo from my vantage point (despite how close I was).

Thanks again to all who have taken the time to respond. It really is appreciated. I'll wait to see if my further clarification here garners any additional response and then I guess I'll have to decide if I want representation or not.

If the exit was so close, then you should have been able to see the ambulance approaching. Face it, you missed it.

 

[3rdtimesacharm]

This is the most helpful reply of all.

If a cranky internet legal advice person thinks I should have been able to see the ambulance, (and I can't explain it any better to the judge than I have been able to in this forum), it's clear to me I need an attorney! Thanks again.

 

[LSCAP]

I would assume that exiting a parking lot, and entering traffic, you WOULD HAVE LOOKED TO THE LEFT. Those are the cars that would HIT you.
As for the illegal right turn, Who says so. You turned right, and had to move into the only open lane. PERHAPS, you are guilty of not signalling when you moved to the inside lane, but that's pushing the issue.


I stick with what I said in my last post.
I believe that if you told what happened, (AND DON'T SAY, "I know I was guilty. OF anything) you stand a good chance for a break, if not a dismissal,

Well, dismissal isn't likely because they want your money, so accept any offers of less.

 

[Zigner]

I would assume that exiting a parking lot, and entering traffic, you WOULD HAVE LOOKED TO THE LEFT. Those are the cars that would HIT you.

And she SHOULD have looked to the right - those are the pedestrians who she'll mow over

As for the illegal right turn, Who says so. You turned right, and had to move into the only open lane. PERHAPS, you are guilty of not signalling when you moved to the inside lane, but that's pushing the issue.

The OP says so. OP admits she turned out of the lot in to the left-hand lane.

 

[LSCAP]

LOL, By ZIGNER; And she SHOULD have looked to the right - those are the pedestrians who she'll mow over

I love it, Okay, you approach the curb, check that there is no one in front of you, You glance to the right to see how traffic is building up, or moving.THEN you LOOK LEFT, and put most of your attention on looking for a chance to get safely into traffic.

If the OP at least tries to give a reasonable excuse she might get a reduction. and, as no one was hurt, and she did quickly move to the right, she does stand a chance.
And if you've never been in a tight spot with emergency vehicles, well, I've seen cars scramble all over the place and still end up in the way of the emergency vehicle. AT LEAST SHE DID NOT STOP IN FRONT OF THE AMBULANCE.