Another reason Virginia sucks

[CptSternn]

http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/34/3404.asp

The Virginia House of Delegates on February 4 approved legislation that would make a rolling right-hand turn on a red light a reckless driving offense. The bill introduced by Delegate Bill Janis (R-Glen Allen) was approved with a 67 to 31 vote and is now pending before the Senate Courts of Justice Committee.

"Any person who drives a motor vehicle in violation of Section 46.2-833 is guilty of reckless driving," House Bill 1993 states.

Under current law, Section 46.2-833, as referenced above, makes it an infraction either to turn right without stopping on a red light or to enter an intersection a fraction of a second after the light changes to red. The effect of the bill would be to change the penalty for a California stop into a class one misdemeanor carrying six license points, a fine of up to $2500, up to one year in jail and a six-month driver's license suspension. US Department of Transportation statistics show that rolling stops rarely cause accidents (view report).

This outcome is clearly contemplated by the House Courts of Justice Committee which amended the original version of the bill which only sought to impose the reckless penalty on anyone who "unintentionally causes the serious bodily injury or death of another" through red light running. The committee also struck a provision ensuring that the reckless penalty is not applied to infractions detected by a red light camera.

Virginia lawmakers are notorious for turning what other states treat as ordinary traffic infractions into serious misdemeanors. For example, the offense of driving as little as 10 MPH over the limit on some rural interstates may only be charged as reckless driving. Section 46.2-860 of the state code allows police to cite motorists who fail to use a turn signal with reckless driving. In an interview with TheNewspaper, senior Virginia State Police officials confirmed that there are no written guidelines covering offenses that can be treated either as infractions or as reckless driving, leaving police officers free to cite under the reckless statute at their discretion.

The issue came to light in 2007 when the state attempted to impose a mandatory $1050 tax on reckless driving convictions which turned out primarily to involve minor speeding offenses. A bicyclist in Newport News was charged with reckless driving for pedaling too fast. In practice, the state uses the reckless charge to discourage motorists from challenging citations by forcing a plea bargain that is favorable to the state.

A copy of House Bill 1993 in the version as passed by the House, followed by the original version, is available in a 10k PDF file at the source link below. Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated the Senate committee had acted on the legislation.

[Solumina]

I'm actually kind of happy about that change as I have almost been hit multiple times by people turning on a red just because the person in front of them was able to go. You are to treat it as a stop not a yield or caution and it has been causing a lot of problems down here. When you look at the books some of Virginia's traffic laws seem harsh but Virginia drivers aren't following the laws so you may as well up the penalty, especially for things that take minimal effort and time yet would seriously improve road safety. I’m not always a fan of VA law, traffic law included, but this change I’m behind.

[CptSternn]

Originally Posted by Solumina

I'm actually kind of happy about that change as I have almost been hit multiple times by people turning on a red just because the person in front of them was able to go.

So you are happy that you now can get a $2500 fine, year in jail, and lose your license for not coming to a complete stop even when you are totally clear to drive?

You have to love your statement.

You were ALMOST hit MULTIPLE times. That means you have never been hit nor even been in an accident like this, because people drive well enough not to cause an accident, a fact you in your statement verify has happened multiple times.

This combined with the fact, and I quote from the article, 'US Department of Transportation statistics show that rolling stops rarely cause accidents' - less than 1% of accidents are caused by this, meaning it's not really a huge issue.

So why the legislation? It's another cash cow that local authorities will use to rake in thousands while giving tickets to people who really shouldn't get them.

Like the $1000 speeding tickets for Virginia residents.

I for one would hate to live in a place where I was viewed as 'cattle' for local authorities to impose inane taxes on to fund the state.

[Solumina]

I've avoided the accidents by slamming on my breaks and/or swerving to avoid people, even if it doesn't cause an actual accident it still fucks up the flow of traffic and has the potential to cause a lot of damage. You also seem to be ignoring the fact that it is already something that is against the law to do but people think the consequences are totally worth trying to save less than a second, when shit like that happens you up the consequences. Lets also not over look the fact that in Virginia it is standard practice to write the letter of the law as much harsher than the actual implementation, like speed limits being set 10mph lower than people are actually expected to drive and ticketing for accordingly (like if you are going 65 in a 45 where pretty much everyone goes 55 then your ticket will be written for going 55).

Oh and I don't have to worry about that fine, loosing my license, or jail time (all of which, other than court costs, you can make go away if it is your first traffic violation in three years as long as you agree to go to traffic school) because I always come to a complete stop.