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Florida 8-Year-Old Gets Traffic Ticket For Bike Mishap
BRADENTON, Fla. -- The parents of an 8-year-old boy ticketed by police
for violating traffic rules on his bike say they won't pay the $34 citation for a child who is just half the legal driving age. Second-grader Scott Montgomery has 30 days to pay Manatee County for the ticket written by a Bradenton police officer Wednesday. "I'm going to not pay this ticket, and Scott's definitely not going to pay it," said Danielle McIntosh, the boy's mother. She added the only money her son has is the allowance he has been saving for a battery-operated miniature truck. "He's an 8-year-old child. He does not understand what the right of way is," She said. Scott was riding a bicycle in his neighborhood when he jumped a dirt mound with five of his friends, Bradenton Police Lt. Sam Campbell said. He crossed paths with a 2001 Nissan and the car clipped the rear tire of Scott's 5-pound, 16-inch BMX bicycle. Scott wasn't injured, but was cited by Officer Jeff Beckley for violating the right of way. "I'm doing OK," said Scott, who was not wearing a helmet during the accident. "I hit a little bit of his car, but then I just got off my bike and ran away." McIntosh said the two people in the Nissan claimed Scott flew up onto the hood of their car, causing $1,000 worth of damage. Campbell said that police estimated $500 and could not confirm whether Scott hit the hood. "His mother was apparently pretty upset with us," Campbell said. "But in this case, the child caused the accident by pulling out in front of the car. The driver didn't have time to react." Campbell said officers issue citations to many children throughout the year for not wearing helmets or for committing traffic violations on their bicycles. Officers draft the tickets in the child's name but usually expect the parents to pay them. If no one is cited during an accident, insurance companies will demand that vehicle owners pay for their damages even if they are not at fault. It is a liability as well as a safety issue, Campbell said. http://www.local6.com/news/2580655/detail.html Doug |
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Florida 8-Year-Old Gets Traffic Ticket For Bike Mishap
These parents should be cited for contempt of court and thrown in jail. They are teaching their kid that nothing is ever his fault and he does not have to bear responsibility for his actions. He is clearly at fault for almost HITTING A CAR and getting himself killed. Why the heck are the parents upset with the cops? They should take away the kids bike for months for that kind of stupidity and thank the driver obvious quick reaction that didn't lead to further injury. The cop has all the reasons for giving this ticket. Even if the cop wanted to let the kid off with just a warning for his stupidity, it would have meant that the driver had to pay for his own repairs. That is HARDLY fair. Perhaps if the parents really want the ticket to go away, they should offer to pay for the damages to the car instead of the ticket. |
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Florida 8-Year-Old Gets Traffic Ticket For Bike Mishap
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8-Year-Old Gets Traffic Ticket / self-policing
I don't get our society's obsession with going after cyclists who break
traffic laws with even greater zeal then speeding drivers, which kill thousands. Traffic laws are about preventing death and destruction, not some kind of social etiquette. You break them on a bike, you get maimed or killed - and you have no legal recourse. You break them in a car and you maim and kill others. The term self-policing comes to mind. I feel the real problem with this is people focus on the small real penalty (a teeny ticket) and forget about the big penalty (quadriplegia). Failing to yield the right of way on a BMX bike is not the same as in a Hummer. Personally I think bike tickets should be limited to the cost of requiring a cop to jack cyclists up, tell them at a high decibel level in front of everyone what morons they are to risk their lives, hand them a GOOD cycling guide, and filing a warning in the system (probably about $20). The parting shot by the cop is telling them that their record is the first place the lawyers will look if they are in an accident. Good luck getting a decent settlement with a bad record and jury full of drivers - knucklehead! "sbirn" wrote in message ... These parents should be cited for contempt of court and thrown in jail. They are teaching their kid that nothing is ever his fault and he does not have to bear responsibility for his actions. He is clearly at fault for almost HITTING A CAR and getting himself killed. Why the heck are the parents upset with the cops? They should take away the kids bike for months for that kind of stupidity and thank the driver obvious quick reaction that didn't lead to further injury. The cop has all the reasons for giving this ticket. Even if the cop wanted to let the kid off with just a warning for his stupidity, it would have meant that the driver had to pay for his own repairs. That is HARDLY fair. Perhaps if the parents really want the ticket to go away, they should offer to pay for the damages to the car instead of the ticket. |
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Florida 8-Year-Old Gets Traffic Ticket For Bike Mishap
On Sat, 25 Oct 2003 19:04:34 GMT, Bill Z. wrote:
You can fill out an accident report and establish liability without issuing a citation. Really? Can you please present your Florida law credentials and a case history of handling traffic claims? If not, then I will happily take the statement of the local Florida press which said: "If no one is cited during an accident, insurance companies will demand that vehicle owners pay for their damages even if they are not at fault." http://www.bradenton.com/mld/bradent...al/7090233.htm Notice...*EVEN IF THEY ARE NOT AT FAULT*. That seems to directly contradict your statement, so you really need to prove that you have any basis other than hot air for your statement. Notifying the parents of an 8 year old who did something stupid is a useful social service, and that can also be done without a citation. Because of the above issue, I disagree. However, I also fail to see what is wrong with having concrete consequences for his stupidity - or rather his parents' stupidity in failing to properly teach him road safety. The article also makes clear that the ticket is issued to the child, but the expectation is for the parents to pay. Personally, I think that the parents are getting off easy. They were negligent in teaching their child proper safety, they have obviously failed to teach him proper values that he shoudl own up for his actions. A mere $34 is peanuts for that offense. |
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8-Year-Old Gets Traffic Ticket / self-policing
On Sat, 25 Oct 2003 20:19:36 GMT, Robert Haston wrote:
Hummer. Personally I think bike tickets should be limited to the cost of requiring a cop to jack cyclists up, tell them at a high decibel level in front of everyone what morons they are to risk their lives, hand them a GOOD Why? What if it is a mo-ped? What about a motorcycle? Should Harley riders get the same warning as a cyclist? Is getting smacked by a car less risky on a street-legal dirt bike than on a mountain bike? Bikes are vehicles, just like any other. I think that selective enforcement is simply stupid. You can (and should) allow officer discretion, but that should be used based on the circumstances of the case and not the vehicle type invovled. This year alone, I've narrowly avoided being doored, side-swiped and cut off numerous times. I even had one driver get out of his car and grab my shoulder to try to pull me off my bike while I was at speed in the middle of a main downtown street. In the later case, a police report was filed. As much as these guys deserve whatever ticket is appropriate, so do the cyclists I see who run red lights, ride at road speeds on sidewalks and a host of other offenses I've seen. Incidentally, what happens when a cyclist cuts off a car and the driver causes a collision (maybe hits a pedestrian) trying to avoid the cyclist? Do you only start cracking down when it's too late? |
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Florida 8-Year-Old Gets Traffic Ticket For Bike Mishap
....stuff deleted
These parents should be cited for contempt of court and thrown in jail. They should certainly be resonsible for whatever damage was incurred and for paying whatever fines apply for violating the vehicle laws. Exactly the same as though they were driving and had the same type of incident. Some folks seem to feel that cyclists are privleged in some way and should not be held accountable for their actions. Even though I am a cyclist, I can't get behind this as a concept. They are teaching their kid that nothing is ever his fault and he does not have to bear responsibility for his actions. Correct. They are also teaching their child that they don't give a flying F*** about him. I remember my parents reactions when I perfomed some equally dangerous acts as a youth. It was clear that if I broke something, they paid compensation and there were definite consequences for me as a result. He is clearly at fault for almost HITTING A CAR and getting himself killed. Why the heck are the parents upset with the cops? They should take away the kids bike for months for that kind of stupidity and thank the driver obvious quick reaction that didn't lead to further injury. He actually did hit, and damage, the hood of the car. Given today's costs, the $500 the cops cite is a very conservative number. The $1000 is definitely closer to the mark, at least here in Ca. These folks will also be seeing an increase in insurance premiums just because it was printed in the paper and their insurance company knows about the incident. They deserve at least sufficient compensation from the boy/parents to make up for their losses. ....stuff deleted Rick |
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Florida 8-Year-Old Gets Traffic Ticket For Bike Mishap
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Florida 8-Year-Old Gets Traffic Ticket For Bike Mishap
On Sun, 26 Oct 2003 06:13:26 GMT, Bill Z. wrote:
Hey bozo, Ahh....showing off our intellect I see. Perhaps you are a classmate of the 8-year old in question? this is the case in California, where I live. A couple of Don't complain to me. You're the one who made a very clear factual statement, and I simply told you to put up or shut up. In the future, if you are simply making up your own facts, it would help to state as much in your original message. That way people won't confuse you for someone actually informed. was *parked* in front of a friends house. I didn't hear about a citation, Tree falls in a forest? but his insurance company picked up my deductable and the cost of a car rental for a month. That's simply standard when fault can be clearly established. You don't need a law degree to know how this works. True, but obviously you lack the brain required to see how your case, even if it occured in the same state, is different from this one. In your case, it was his insurance company that picked up the tab when the police determined that you were not at fault. I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that perhaps the 8-year-old's insurance on his bicycle might not be completly paid up. Flipping it around, what would have happened if the guy who hit your car had no insurance? If your insurance company refused to pick up the tab, you'd be on the hook - or you'd have to take the driver to civil court. Is this starting to penetrate into the thick receses of your head? Children do not have insurance on their bikes. In your case, it was a settlement between two insurance companies. Got it? If Florida allows insurance companies to cheat their customers, then start firing your governor and elected representatives until How is it cheating? All the article suggests to me is that if only one party is insured, the insurance company needs the police to make a clear citation of fault (via a ticket) in order for the insurance company to pick up the tab. Seems pretty simple and logical to me. Incidentally, what clue have I given that I am from florida? And don't you believe everything you read in the paper---often some key facts are missing. But we should believe everything you type in a Usenet post? I see. You mean you'd rather have his parents pay a fine to the state rather than compenstate the driver if they don't have the financial resources to do both? Unless the law can force them to pay outside of a civil suit, I don't see how they can be compelled to do so. Therefore, I simply pointed out that if this stupid mother wants to take some moral stand against the ticket, she should at least back up the consequences of the ticket and pay for the repairs. After all is said and done, I'd love to see the parents lose their financial resources to own a car in a lawsuit, but that is a civil matter for down the road. |
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Florida 8-Year-Old Gets Traffic Ticket For Bike Mishap
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