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I just got pulled over today for the dumbest thing

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jinso

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

I violated VC 21950(a), which is failure to yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk. I was driving around in LA today and I was at a corner with a red light. I was waiting to make my right turn and I noticed to the crosswalk signal go off as I was turning. It was one of those really long crosswalks and I figured theres no way I am gonna hit anyone by going since there were people all the way at the beginning of the crosswalk. If they were in the middle already walking, of course Id stop for them. Anyone here ever get a ticket for this?? Can I do something about it? I hear the fine is worth over $200.00.
 


sandyclaus

Senior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

I violated VC 21950(a), which is failure to yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk. I was driving around in LA today and I was at a corner with a red light. I was waiting to make my right turn and I noticed to the crosswalk signal go off as I was turning. It was one of those really long crosswalks and I figured theres no way I am gonna hit anyone by going since there were people all the way at the beginning of the crosswalk. If they were in the middle already walking, of course Id stop for them. Anyone here ever get a ticket for this?? Can I do something about it? I hear the fine is worth over $200.00.
Just because you didn't present an immediate danger to the pedestrians doesn't negate the fact that you had crossed into the crosswalk.

The fine for violation of California vehicle code section 21950 is $234. You will also earn one point against your driver's license for a conviction under this statute, but you can opt (and pay) for traffic school to eliminate this if you have not already done so within the last 18 months.

The best way to beat a traffic ticket for this violation is to question the Officer’s judgement of the situation. If you can convince the court that no pedestrians were anywhere near you when you proceeded to cross the lines of the crosswalk, you may have a chance at beating the ticket. That means making a court appearance, and possibly hiring an attorney to defend the citation. Of course, if the Officer doesn't show up, the judge may well rule in your favor.
 
It sounds like you didn't violate the statute.

Many people, including police officers and judges, mistakenly believe that VC 21950 requires a driver to wait until pedestrians have completely cleared the crosswalk before proceeding.

The correct rule of law for yielding to pedestrians under VC 21950 only requires the driver to wait until it is reasonably safe to proceed. The driver is not required to wait until the pedestrian reaches the sidewalk. This was explicitly stated by the California Court of Appeals in "People v. McLachlan" (1939) 93 P.2d 280, on pg. 282.

From my own reading of the McLachlan case and several others, it appears that proving that it was reasonably safe to proceed is pretty easy. The Court of Appeals actually says in McLachlan that a driver only needs to yield under VC 21950 if it's necessary to avoid a collision. That sounds like you can only violate VC 21950 if you actually hit the pedestrian.


From what you've said, it sounds like the pedestrians were pretty far from your vehicle and in no danger when you moved through the crosswalk. If that's the case, I don't see any reason why you should lose as long as the judge is willing to follow the rule announced by the court of appeals like he is supposed to and as long as the Police Officer's version of events doesn't place the pedestrians much closer to your vehicle than they were in your version.
 

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