Jaywalking Sets Stage for Debate on Racial Justice, Pedestrian Safety
Critics of jaywalking laws say ticketing does not improve safety, but opponents of decriminalization say police should be able to issue citations to discourage people from putting their lives in danger.
Landwebs
With several recent reports showing that police in some areas disproportionately ticket people of color, a few states have moved away from strict enforcement of jaywalking laws making it easier for pedestrians to cross the street outside of a crosswalk or against a traffic signal without getting cited by police, Pew Stateline reports. Virginia passed a law that prohibits officers from stopping a pedestrian just for jaywalking. Nevada no longer considers it a misdemeanor. And in California, the state Assembly approved a bill in May that would allow people to cross outside of an intersection when it’s safe to do so.
Critics of jaywalking laws say ticketing does not improve safety, but opponents of decriminalization say police should be able to issue citations to discourage people from putting their lives in danger. An estimated 7,485 pedestrians in the U.S. were struck and killed by motorists in 2021—the largest number in four decades. Meanwhile, Black, Hispanic and low-income pedestrians are both more likely to be killed while walking and also represent a disproportionate, and biased, number of those ticketed.
