OMG! Old Woman gets $114 ticket for crossing street TOO SLOW!

[cynatnite]

LOS ANGELES - An 82-year-old woman received a $114 ticket for taking too long to cross a street. Mayvis Coyle said she began shuffling with her cane across Foothill Boulevard in the San Fernando Valley when the light was green, but was unable to make it to the other side before it turned red.

She said the motorcycle officer who ticketed her on Feb. 15 told her she was obstructing traffic.

"I think it's completely outrageous," said Coyle, who described herself as a Cherokee medicine woman. "He treated me like a 6-year-old, like I don't know what I'm doing."

Los Angeles police Sgt. Mike Zaboski of the Valley Traffic Division said police are cracking down on people who improperly cross streets because pedestrian accidents are above normal. He said he could not comment on Coyle's ticket other than to say that it is her word against that of the citing officer, identified only as Officer Kelly.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060410/ap_on_fe_st/elderly_woman_ticketed

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. Maybe the cop should have assisted her across instead.

[glitch]

2. Indeed. What an asshole. nt

[etherealtruth]

5. Yeah, but ...

Then all the "old Ladies and Men" will expect to be given adequate time (and assistance in) to cross streets.
What about all the "poor" drivers that will be forced to give the right of way? :sarcasm:

[shain from kane]

3. Put her on an ice floe and wave goodbye. n/t

[0007]

11. Been hanging with junior, 'eh?

[nonconformist]

4. That is disgusting.

The elderly are so disrespected, it's shameful.

[VaYallaDawg]

6. It really is distressing to see something like this.

I'm 65 myself, and thank the good Lord I'm almost as active as I was at 30 - enjoying good health - and can hightail it across the street with the best of them. But in this era that is so worshipful of the angry young white male -- who knows.

[0rganism]

7. "Do you have a license for that cane, lady?"

"Where's your motorized cart? You are not allowed outdoors without non-pedestrian transport." :eyes:

[DrDebug]

8. Outrageous. Esp. the $114 part

I think it is not correct either, because if the light was green when she started crossing, she will still have the right away even after the light turns to red. I'm pretty sure about that as well.

[cynatnite]

9. Emailed KO

Deserves world's worst person.

[nylab123]

10. My grandmother got a ticket for driving...

too slow! The minimum speed on the highway was 40 mph. She was doing less than that, and sure enough, she got a ticket. LOL

[TreasonousBastard]

12. The Death Penalty for the old bat! How dare...

she get in the way of all those important people wasting gas idling while she crosses the street? Where the hell does she have to go anyway? Not anyplace nearly as important as the people in cars.

I can't tell you how many years of MY life have been spent wasting precious minutes while some old fart or wheelchair cripple tries to get across some street where they have no business going. I tell ya, the next time one of 'em makes me lose the light it's lights out for them.

After we get this one solved, it's school crossings. And why the hell can't I pass a stopped school bus?

[GoldenOldie]

13. This is a serious problem for pedistrians

Young or old and not just in California.

I don't know who regulates the time sequence of traffic lights for pedestrians ability to safely walk, in a crosswalk, but, they should be made to spend a few hours attempting to do so themselves and in various parts of a busy city before they are let loose on the public.

I visited Thailand several years ago and enjoyed every moment there with the exception of having to walk across streets......it was suicidal and safer to hire a Tuk Tuk (a small motorized vehichle) to go from one side to the other rather than walking. It know seems that my hometown of Tucson is undergoing the same way for pedestrians as I watch elderly and young rush to cross extremely busy streets before the lights change.....they not only have to race the lights but watch for cars running the lights.

[TreasonousBastard]

14. Sure is...

I remember Queens Boulevard, which at its worst was 8-10 lanes wide with two or three small islands, depending on which part of it you tried to cross. No one could get across there without running, and at one point pedestrian accidents were really getting out of hand.

Route 1 in NJ was another one that was a killer. Not just pedestrians, but cars got caught in the middle when the light changed. Several commercial roads, like Rte 22, had NO predestrian crossings for a mile or so and they ended up putting up fencing to stop people from trying. People still had to find a way across to get to work or catch the bus, though.

My point is simply that pedestrians are now second-class citizens and cars have all the rights. The city of Summit, NJ once tried to put sidewalks in an area with none, and the neighborhood refused to have them. "Who would want to walk here? Nobody that we would want around."