Got in a left hand turn accident, I was going straight and I got the ticket. should I fight it?

[christie42]

Long story short I'm traveling southbound on a 2 way road and am in the left lane, I notice the light turning yellow about 20-30 feet from the pedestrian walkway travelling 45 mph and couldn't possibly slam on my brakes in time to stop so I continued straight. I had noticed a driver in the intersection waiting to turn left and instead of waiting until I drove by turned in front of me causing an accident. I was given a "Careless driving" ticket because the cop said I "Failed to yield" to the car in the intersection.. I know this is bullshit but is the cop right? I haven't overexaggerated anything, I wasn't speeding, when we struck the light was still yellow like I said had plenty of time to clear the intersection. Any insight is appreciated, insurance is still investigating it's been a 8 days as of today 3/21/2012 it happened. State is Florida.

[reuben29]

Take that to court. You shouldn't have gotten a ticket. The person making the left turn has to yield the right of way. Did the other driver get a ticket? If you ran the light then he ran the light.

[egan]

Take that to court. You shouldn't have gotten a ticket. The person making the left turn has to yield the right of way. Did the other driver get a ticket? If you ran the light then he ran the light.

For as long as his light was red, he should be at fault. I would fight it if he pulled out early but I would look up the driving laws for yourself before you waste money on a lawyer.

[byron92]

It's up to you whether you fight it. The law in Indiana states that if you do not have enough room to stop when a light turns yellow, you're allowed to continue through the intersection. Any car turning left should yield to a car that is going straight through an intersection. Indiana law also states that if you are making a left hand turn and the light turns yellow, if there is oncoming traffic, you have to wait to go until the traffic has cleared, and if the light turns red, you still have to complete your turn otherwise you could cause a backup in traffic.

I know Indiana and Florida laws are different, but hopefully this can give you a place to start if you decide to read up on laws in Florida. I would recommend going to your local BMV or DMV, whichever name it goes by down there, and pick up one of the newest driving manuals. You should be able to find plenty of information in there.

[gillian59]

Truthfully, both of you should of gotten a ticket. I would of cited you for running through that yellow light. I know you're still able to go through a yellow light, but sometimes the police are funny about that. Yellow really means slow down to stop at light LOL ( I mean to the police). I really would of cited him because you are really not suppose to be in the intersection when making a left turn. You are really suppose to be behind the white line at the light. Because if the light begins to turn before you have made your left then you will still be behind the light. Technically, he ran the light too. So both of you should have received a citation. He should have received one for running the light and causing a accident. I think they call that reckless operation. Or something like that.