Illegal left turn?

[jo75]

Georgia- I was on a test drive and figured I had gone far enough. So I turned on me left signal and turned into a parking lot. there were cops in the parking lot but I thought they were executing a traffic stop on the car they had pulled over. Well come to find out they were stopping the people pulling into this lot.

I asked the officer what I'd done he said I made an illegal left turn I asked where did it say we couldn't turn he said it was posted I went back to look no postings anywhere, what was there was the double yellow line but from what i read I could turn into a drive way from that lane. the lane I crossed was a turn lane does that matter in this instance?

exact ticket: FAILURE TO OBEY TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICE

 

[I_Got_Banned]

Georgia- I was on a test drive and figured I had gone far enough. So I turned on me left signal and turned into a parking lot. there were cops in the parking lot but I thought they were executing a traffic stop on the car they had pulled over. Well come to find out they were stopping the people pulling into this lot.

I asked the officer what I'd done he said I made an illegal left turn I asked where did it say we couldn't turn he said it was posted I went back to look no postings anywhere, what was there was the double yellow line but from what i read I could turn into a drive way from that lane. the lane I crossed was a turn lane does that matter in this instance?

exact ticket: FAILURE TO OBEY TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICE

What Georgia Code section were you cited for?

I googled the description that you posted (exact ticket: FAILURE TO OBEY TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICE) & came up with GA Code Section 40-6-20 whch states the following:

(a) The driver of any vehicle shall obey the instructions of an official traffic-control device applicable thereto, placed in accordance with this chapter, unless otherwise directed by a police officer, subject to the exceptions granted the driver of an authorized emergency vehicle in this chapter. A violation of this subsection shall be a misdemeanor, except as otherwise provided by subsection (f) of this Code section.

(b) No provisions of this chapter which require official traffic-control devices shall be enforced against an alleged violator if at the time and place of the alleged violation an official device was not in proper position and sufficiently legible to be seen by an ordinarily observant person. Whenever a particular Code section does not state that official traffic-control devices are required, such Code section shall be effective even though no devices are erected or in place.

(c) Whenever official traffic-control devices are placed in position approximately conforming to the requirements of this chapter, such devices shall be presumed to have been so placed by the official act or direction of lawful authority, unless the contrary shall be established by competent evidence.

(d) Any official traffic-control device placed pursuant to this chapter and purporting to conform to the lawful requirements pertaining to such devices shall be presumed to comply with the requirements of this chapter, unless the contrary shall be established by competent evidence.

(e) The disregard or disobedience of the instructions of any official traffic-control device or signal placed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter by the driver of a vehicle shall be deemed prima-facie evidence of a violation of law, without requiring proof of who and by what authority such sign or device has been erected.

This is in no way a preclusion of your violating an illegal left turn over two solid yellow lines. But then again, that is might not be what you were cited for.

(there's more ...)

 

[snowfunatic]

Go to court and contest it. Take pictures of the road to support your contentions that there were no signs. Even if there were signs, it needs to be visible to a reasonable driver. So, I think the burden will eventually fall on the police officer to show that the sign was there.

 

[Zigner]

Go to court and contest it. Take pictures of the road to support your contentions that there were no signs. Even if there were signs, it needs to be visible to a reasonable driver. So, I think the burden will eventually fall on the police officer to show that the sign was there.

Please don't post in the driving portion of this forum until you have a basic grasp regarding the operation of a vehicle.