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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
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    6

    Default Failure to Yield to a Pedestrian in an Unmarked Crosswalk

    My question involves a traffic ticket from the state of: Washington

    I was cited for a "failure to yield to a pedestrian in an unmarked crosswalk" today.

    I was driving down a busy one way street after just proceeding from a red light. There were 3 cars directly in front of me. Naturally I was watching these cars. We came upon a group of 5/6 breaking cars in the lane next to me. There were pedestrians on both sides (left and right) of the street on the sidewalk at an intersection at which the cross traffic has to stop. I saw no intent in any way from the pedestrians to cross the street in any direction as they were back from the curb talking. The lane next to me all stopped however the 4 cars in my lane continued. As we went by I saw that the car in the front of the group in the other lane was a police officer. He came up behind me at a red light I was stopped at a little further down the road and turned on his lights. I then pulled into a parking lot and he proceeded to issue me a ticket for the failure to yield.

    He said he singled me out because I was the last car to go by (there was no other cars behind me at any point) and because of that, I had plenty of time to see the pedestrians and then stop for them. He also said that the other few cars had gone through the light already and there was no way he could catch them.

    So my questions are:
    1. Is this action ticket worthy?
    2. Is there such thing as the presence of an unmarked crosswalk where pedestrians have the right of way at a controlled intersection such as this one?
    and...
    3. Should I contest this ticket or just go to mitigation to hopefully get it reduced?

    Any help in this matter is much appreciated.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Default Re: Failure to Yield to a Pedestrian in an Unmarked Crosswalk

    You are free to contest the ticket and argue that none of the pedestrians showed any interest in crossing the street. Presumably the officer will testify that they were trying to cross. And then the court will decide who is more credible.

    There are a bunch of statutes governing the actions of pedestrians, that depend upon the exact details of the intersection. Read 'em here.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
    Posts
    6

    Default Re: Failure to Yield to a Pedestrian in an Unmarked Crosswalk

    Thanks, I have looked through them a little and will continue. However, now that I'm looking at the ticket and the RCW's on the page, they don't match. He cited me for a 16.61.235 (doesn't exist; closest to RCW's under Animals and Livestock) where it should be a 46.61.235 (dealing with crosswalks).

    Because of this wrong citing, is that a grounds for dismissmal?

    Even if not, I think I might try to contest it.

    Do pedestrians at an unmarked crosswalk have to follow the rules of the road?...such as at a controlled intersection where the side street has to stop, would they have to stop and yield for traffic on the main road?

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
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    98,846

    Default Re: Failure to Yield to a Pedestrian in an Unmarked Crosswalk

    According to the statute, "The operator of an approaching vehicle shall stop and remain stopped to allow a pedestrian or bicycle to cross the roadway within an unmarked or marked crosswalk when the pedestrian or bicycle is upon or within one lane of the half of the roadway upon which the vehicle is traveling or onto which it is turning." You're the one with the ticket; whether or not the pedestrian also committed a violation isn't of itself going to get you out of the ticket.

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