Lets say you are about 4 blocks away from your house, your mom is talking to you on the phone and all the sudden her ex boyfriend comes in and starts beating her up and you hear it... the phone gets hung up and you call 911 but instead of just continuing to do what you are doing -- you speed back to your house ignoring red lights and all that while on the phone with a 911 dispatcher...
Will you still get a speeding ticket or a red light violation since it was an emergency and you could probably get there before a cop?
2007-08-21 16:16:33 · 8 answers · asked by Matt C 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
Yes, because you're not a qualified emergency personnel who could legally go through the red lights.
You could explain it to the judge, but he/she may not be sympathetic, especially since you could have gotten into an accident.
2007-08-21 16:20:08 · answer #1 · answered by Princess Leia 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This one is difficult. In some places your own crimes are ignored if it was to prevent a more serious crime.
In this sort of circumstance I think you would still be ticketed as the proper procedure for you would be to back off and wait for authorities to respond.
I did see a pick-up truck on the highway once (in a no cell reception zone) going about Mach 10 with 4 way flashers on and just leaning on his horn the whole way. In the paper the next day the front page story was that the a saved his father's life after a hunting accident. From asking around the truck I saw was the guy with his critic father, and he was not ticketed for speeding or otherwise, but would have been if not using emergency lights and the horn.
(Town of 25 000, not to hard to get info on someone.)
2007-08-21 23:28:41 · answer #2 · answered by Noota Oolah 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is up to the cop to decide if he wants to give you a ticket. He can if he wants too - you broke the law.
Wanting to get home and save your mom - is a good thing. But by speeding and running red lights you risk the life of every other driver on the road - Lots of folks get killed in automobile accidents. And if you kill someone else - you are responsible for that. So in the end, the speeding and red light running really was not worth it.
Your best bet - is to drive at a safe speed to your home and let the guys with the lights and sirens speed over to the rescue.
2007-08-21 23:22:32 · answer #3 · answered by Boots 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Boy, I sure hope so. The behavior you describe is dangerous on so many levels--speeding, running lights, talking on the phone while driving--not to mention what will happen at the house once this public menace arrives and confronts an out of control ex boyfriend.
This person could try the "defense of others" justification, but it wouldn't fly with me. I wouldn't stop with a speeding ticket or red light violation. The entire pattern adds up to a reckless driving citation in my book.
2007-08-21 23:28:58 · answer #4 · answered by raichasays 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You will probably still get a ticket. You have no way of notifying other drivers that there is an emergency so they can get out of your way. What I mean by that is you do not have lights and a siren like a cop or an ambulance would have.
2007-08-21 23:22:58 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can only run red lights and speed if you are driving an emergency vehicle.
2007-08-22 00:20:07 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Technically you can get a ticket, but an officer using discretion may not cite you for one.
2007-08-21 23:20:40 · answer #7 · answered by Glen B 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Only if you don't get caught.
2007-08-21 23:26:14 · answer #8 · answered by ? 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋