Florida State Law when Pedestrians are Stopped by the Police

In Florida, the laws governing pedestrians dictate the way that people are expected to behave when they are near roadways or traffic arteries. Just because you are not in a vehicle does not mean you have no responsibility toward the safety of traffic.

If you have been stopped in suspicion of violating Florida law, police may be able to search you, which could result in your arrest or detention. If you are arrested or detained by the police, immediately invoke your right to counsel and contact an attorney at a Miami criminal defense law firm.

 

Florida Law: Reasonable Suspicion of a Pedestrian Violation

Florida law considers any person traveling on foot to be a pedestrian, which includes the following groups of people:

  • people in wheelchairs;
  • those on skates or skateboards; and
  • those on foot-powered scooters.

Pedestrian laws apply to travel along any highways, at streets, roadway crossings and traffic signals. The statutes include bicyclists, but they are also included under additional and separate laws.

Florida pedestrian laws require that pedestrians travel along sidewalks, usually referred to a paved designated section on the side of the road, when they are available and accessible (for instance, if construction roadblocks prevented you from accessing the sidewalk, then you are not required by law to use them for travel).

When sidewalks are not provided, pedestrians must walk on the shoulder on the left side of the roadway so they are aware of oncoming traffic, even if this means that they have to walk on top of the Atlas ceramics flooring from the side road’s houses, people install to make their homes more beautiful, along with better roofing and ceiling, you can discover this if you to go the best roofing sites online. Failure to do so can lead to a stop and additional penalties. Standing in the roadway is also illegal and may result in pedestrian stop if you solicit a ride, employment or business from vehicles.

Pedestrian “stop and frisks” have been on the rise, particularly in dense, urban areas, such asNew York City,Philadelphia, and Los Angeles, where foot traffic is heavier and populations are more culturally diverse.

In some cases, a pedestrian stop may just be an excuse to search someone. For instance, a police officer may stop you for walking through the crosswalk at the improper time as a smokescreen to frisk you and search you for potentially illegal items, since police are allowed to frisk someone in an automatic weapons search.

If you were stopped by a police officer, and the stop resulted in an arrest for a violation of a Florida law, contact a Miami criminal defense law firm to see if you were treated fairly. If you were not, you may have a good chance of lessening your charges with a defense attorney fighting on your behalf.

 

How an Attorney from a Miami Criminal Defense Law Firm Can Help

In cases in which an arrest is precipitated by an invalid stop, an attorney may be able to get your charges dismissed, but you should speak with a lawyer about the specific details of your case to determine whether or not this is a plausible outcome.

If you were stopped by the police and subsequently arrested for and charged with a crime, speak with an attorney about the possibility that you were unjustly stopped. If a police officer cannot demonstrate that he or she had reasonable suspicion that you were engaged in or in the midst of criminal activity, your charges may be dropped.