Walking across a street can be illegal

This week, readers want to know about Metropolitan Police Department policies and Nevada laws related to crosswalks, fender-benders, pulling motorists over and drivers who tool around town without license plates.

Pat Cotugno asks: During my morning walk, I was stopped two times by Metro and told I had to cross only at an intersection per NRS. I responded with "are you telling me that I cannot cross the roadway at any point other than a crosswalk, safely and yielding to traffic before crossing?" Their reply was to cross only at an intersection.

Getting stopped by officers on your morning walk is no way to start your day, Pat, so here's the deal: If you find yourself crossing a street between two intersections equipped with traffic-control devices, you may not cross at any point other than the crosswalk, according to NRS 484.328. If there are no traffic signals or signs at nearby intersections, you may cross the road but must yield to traffic. In that case, it's best to remember what our kindergarten teachers taught us: Look left, then right, then left again. Good luck.

Duane has this beef: What bugs me is when Metro stops a traffic offender and blocks the right-hand lane of traffic. I see this regularly -- even when there is an empty parking lot or a little- used side street only 20 feet away. Why can't the officer have the offender pull forward to a safer, out-of-the-way spot? Often the result is a backup in traffic. Once, the traffic backed up into a light-controlled intersection. And the officers seem oblivious to the problems they are creating.

Actually, patrol officers would rather motorists pull into a parking lot or a side street, but some drivers quickly pull to the curb. Once a motorist pulls over, the officer will park at an angle to protect both the driver and the cop from getting struck by passing motorists.

According to officer Barbara Morgan, officers don't use their public address system to direct motorists to pull off the roadway because they don't know the mental state or criminal history of the driver.

"You don't know who you're dealing with; they might try to flee," Morgan said.

If the officer approaches the vehicle and the driver appears to be cooperative, he or she may ask the motorist to pull into a parking lot so that traffic is not disrupted.

Here is Jerry Andreoli Jr.'s story: He was in a fender-bender and his car could not be driven. Las Vegas police responded and called a tow truck, which hauled his vehicle to the department's impound lot, even though he wanted the car taken to the auto shop he frequents. The tow truck driver told him it had to be towed to the impound lot "to protect any insurance claim" he may have.

Jerry wants to know why this happened.

Jerry, you could have had your vehicle towed to the place of your choice. However, when you do that, you must pay the tow truck driver prior to the haul. Las Vegas police contract with two companies, Quality Towing and Ewing Bros Auto Body & Towing. If you don't state a preference, they will take it to the impound lot and your insurance should cover the cost of releasing it.

Whether the car is taken to a police contract lot or your own auto shop has no effect on the insurance claim. Regardless, an insurance adjuster will respond to estimate the damage, according to Morgan. Maybe the tow truck driver thought you might get a quicker response from the adjuster if it was taken to the police lot, or maybe he just gave you bad advice.

The situation changes if you are arrested for driving under the influence or any other offense. In that case, you don't have a choice.

Paul asks: Why don't police stop cars with no license plates or permits? While driving, I see at least two an hour in Las Vegas.

Since we had Morgan on the phone, we pitched this question to her too. Her answer was simple: "We stop people constantly for no license plates."

Some motorists do have temporary permits attached to their windshield, and Morgan acknowledged that while they are supposed to be 10-day permits, some motorists keep them on for months. The only way officers can cite such motorists is if they pull them over. However, it's not practical to pull over every car with a temporary permit.

If you have a question, tip or tirade, call Adrienne Packer at (702) 387-2904, or send an e-mail to roadwarrior@reviewjournal.com. Include your phone number.