What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Georgia
Any way of getting out of failure to yield ticket?
Came up to intersection light, turning left, car in oncoming lane is in his turn lane turning to his left.(light is green) I stopped until on-coming traffic has cleared, as I'm turning to my left the opposite vehicle changes his mind and turns right, towards my way. We both stop for safety reasons and I proceed in front, cop pulls me over for failure to yield. Do I have any argument to fight this charge? In my opinion the other car was in the wrong.
Additional Details
If we are both in our own respective turn lanes, im stopped waiting on traffic to clear and then I turn. She comes out of her turn lane and turns to her right instead of left without any warning how am I at fault?
You start out by saying “his” and “he”... Then you finish up with “she” and “her”... Are these 2 cars or one and the same?
Even with your additional details, you're still way too short on details. The answer will mainly depend on a number of different factors including but not limited to how many lanes are in each direction (before the turn)... how close to the intersection did she change direction and start her right turn... whether she signaled her intention to turn left and then changed... how fast was she approaching the intersection. It will also depend on how many lanes make up the roadway you both turned onto and whether you made your left turn into the left most portion of the roadway that you turned on... whether you had sufficient time to react to her change of movement which still may/may not relieve you of your duty to yield the right of way... etc.
Mainly, it will all depend on the wording of the code section you were cited for!
By law (see
§ 40-6-120 - Methods of turning at intersections http://law.justia.com/codes/georgia/2010/title-40/chapter-6/article-6/40-6-120/ &
§ 40-6-123 - Turning movements; signals required on turning, changing lanes, slowing, or stopping http://law.justia.com/codes/georgia/2010/title-40/chapter-6/article-6/40-6-123/),
both the approach to a right turn and the right turn shall be made as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway AND
no such turn shall be made without giving an appropriate and timely signal... But keep in mind that even if she did make an illegal right turn from the left turn lane, you may still be required to yield the right of way to her.
Similarly, your left turn must be made from the leftmost portion of the roadway you were turning from to the leftmost portion of the roadway you were turning onto and only after giving the appropriate signal!
Depending on the circumstances, most of the issues I mentioned above can become secondary when compared to the burden you carry to yield the right of way when making a left turn across opposite lanes of traffic.
Am I guessing correctly that the code section you were cited for is...
O.C.G.A. § 40-6-71 (or a similar local ordinance)?
§ 40-6-71. Vehicle turning left
The driver of a vehicle intending to turn to the left within an intersection or into an alley, private road, or driveway shall yield the right of way to any vehicle approaching from the opposite direction which is within the intersection or so close thereto as to constitute an immediate hazard.
The question then becomes if her movement was so obviously odd, late or inappropriate, then why did the officer decide to cite you for failing to yield instead of citing her for an illegal turn, an illegal change of lane... etc? Only he can answer that question with any degree of certainty!
We both stop for safety reasons and I proceed in front...
Just an assumption, but it is also possible that the officer did not see any of what transpired before ^this point^ (where you both are in the intersection, both are trying to turn onto the same roadway and in the same direction, and both of you stopped briefly)...
The part I think will hurt you the most is that after you both stopped, and rather than allowing her to continue her right turn (since you do have the burden to yield the right of way at that point)... you, instead, cut in front of her and turn first, giving the oficer reason to cite you for failing to yield!
At least that is how I see it...
