Question for my police friends?

Question

A school bus is stopped at the side of the road. Both lanes are still open.

It's stop sign is up. The door is open because the bus driver is talking to a parent.

A driver comes up and drives passed the bus.

Should the driver get a ticket? What does the law say?

Thank you for your help.

I go the ticket yesterday.

No flashing lights were on. I live in California.

Should I suck it up and pay the ticket, or should I contest it? thanks again

Answer 1

I understand fully the kind of scenario you're talking about. At the bottom of this reply I'll reference a vehicle code talbe of contents, and they you should scroll down to 'school busses - passing' mainly to familiarize yourself with the language of the section for which you were cited.

That doesn't mean I urge you to plead guilty or pay it. This is going to have to be a judgment call on your end, depending on what you think you can successfully articulate to the traffic court.

There's no real down side of making a personal appearance to state your case, unless you have been given a chance to attend driving school to wipe out the citation from your record. That's a pretty good deal for a generally safe driver.

But what if you plead not guilty and asked to appear to explain why you felt there were other circumstances that the ticket doesn't address? For this I'm thinking that - and only you know the answer to this - some factors may influence a judge's decision (or may not - that's the gamble). Technically it's a violation, no matter what - you'll see that when you read the section. You are in worse shape if you just drove up on this parked bus and things went quickly. You arrived, didn't see any children, saw the stop sign out, thought it was save to proceed since you saw the driver talking to someone, so you did....and got a ticket. Not much of a defense there.

If you arrived however and stopped. You had a moment to observe. Seconds passed. You could see that kids were let out and they're already walking down the sidewalk. The driver looks like he forgot to raise the stop signal. He's engaged in conversation with a parent. You slowly go by. Even though still a violation (according to the section) I think you'd at least have more to talk about in your favor than the first scenario. If still found guilty, the fine may be significantly less.

The traffic court is there for you to use. It's a right that you have. I've seen those situations too where the bus driver seems to forget the stop light is flashing and his duty of letting of children has long passed....and other cars and drivers are backing up wondering what to do.

The officer who cited you will have made notes on the back of his copy. Expect that. He will have written some reminders as to your speed, the conditions, and maybe you even brought this matter up when he talked to you. In preparation for that possible defense, he may have written some extra notes in case he has to explain it more in court.

Your call.

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/vc/vc_index_s.htm

Answer 2

More than likely this depends upon how the law reads in your state. In Georgia, it is a major violation to pass a school bus when the lights are on and the sign is out. Even though the driver may have been talking to a parent, there is the possibility that a child could be near and could get off the bus. That is why the law is in effect, and you are suppose to stop on both sides of the road in Georgia unless the road has a physical divider. The violation/charge is in the same class as D.U.I., Reckless Driving...all major violations in the eyes of the states and in the eyes of the insurance companie$.

To answer your question, should the driver get a ticket...I say yes. The laws are enacted for a reason, and the driver passing a school bus with it's emergency equipment (lights/stop bar and sign) activated is inherently dangerous in itself. So I do believe that he/she should get a ticket.

If you got the ticket, and the lights were not on...I would go to court and contest the ticket. When you go, I would tell the courts that you understand the charge, but the lights were not on. Let them know if the stop sign was out or not. I would tell the courts that the driver was just talking to someone...this is not a guarantee that you will get out of it, but if you act like a gentleman and let them know you did not malicously do this with disregard for the law...maybe they may have mercy on you. Judges are people to and some of them are understanding. Good luck!

Answer 3

I know this is not the answer you were hoping for but I witnessed a similar incident where the stop sign was out, the driver was talking to the parent while she was waiting for her SECOND kid to finish putting her stuff back into her bag to get off the bus. It may not seem like it to you -but it's possible another kid was about to get off the bus. STOP means stop. I think you should pay the ticket and reflect on how much worse you would be feeling now had you killed a little child. You simply cannot know what's going on while your car is in motion-things are happening too quickly or there may be factors you cannot see and are not aware of. Please -always give the benefit of the doubt and your patience-to the school buses-way too much is at stake!! Next time-beep your horn a little if it looks like the driver is needlessly holding up traffic. Also get the school bus company name, the license plate, bus number and, most importantly-look at the side of the bus for the sticker on the door that says the route number. This way you can report the drivers inconsideration to the bus company. If need be, park your vehicle and get out and walk up to the door to get this number. Also mention to the driver and the parent-their inconsideration and abuse of the bus 'right of way' priveliges. She/He has no right to hold up traffic to have a long chit chat. They can swap phone numbers and talk later. This is the problem with society today-people are too inconsiderate of one another.
Have a good day my friend. ☺ I'm sorry about your ticket but that's life.

Answer 4

According to the law in Illinois where I live, if a school bus is stopped with its lights on and stop sign out then yes you get the ticket. If the bus driver is talking to a parent, chances are the bus will be moving shortly, so I would wait. If you try to fight it in court you will probably lose and then have to pay court fees. The courts frown upon passing stopped school busses.

Answer 5

If a cop should see this senario, he could possibly give a ticket. Normally, the bus has to be in one lane with the sign up. But, if it's pulled off the road, a driver would not legally have to stop.

Answer 6

Each state has slightly different laws on it.

In Missouri, you would get a ticket if the stop sign was out, it doesnt matter if the bus is on the side of the road or not.

Answer 7

Why would you get a ticket for passing a bus that has stopped?

Answer 8

Its always best to stop and see whats going on. If you get ticketed its probably a good one to go to court on. Instead of getting a ticket for passing a school bus, you could get a falure to obey traffic device.

Answer 9

Yes! It is unlawful to pass a school bus with the stop sign up, unless the driver instructs you to do otherwise.

Answer 10

Pay up. You should never pass a stopped bus.