A Parking Lot Accident — You be the Judge

Parking Lot Accident: You be the Judge

by Dale G. Larrimore, Esquire

Facts:

                After stopping at a fast food restaurant, Judy was backing out of an angled parking space. Suddenly, another car entered the parking lot at about 30 mph and slammed into the rear of Judy’s car. All of the damage was to the rear of Judy’s car. There was no damage to the right side or the right rear quarter panel. When the police came to the scene to investigate, the officer gave Judy a traffic ticket for careless driving because she “caused an accident while backing.”

                Under Section 3702 of the Vehicle Code of Pennsylvania, “no driver shall back a vehicle unless the movement can be made with safety and without interfering with other traffic and then only after yielding the right-of-way to moving traffic and pedestrians.” Judy was cited for violating Section 3714 of the Vehicle Code: “Any person who drives a vehicle in careless disregard for the safety of persons or property is guilty of careless driving.”

                Was Judy guilty of careless driving? You be the judge.

Analysis:

                The general rule, established by 75 Pa.C.S. §3101, is that the Vehicle Code applies only to the operation of vehicles on streets and highways, defined in the code to include any publicly maintained road that is open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel, including roadways open to the use of the public on the grounds of a college, university, school or park. There are very specific sections of the code that apply to the operation of vehicles on highways and trafficways (defined to include any place open to the public for purposes of travel as a matter of right or custom), but this is limited to serious offenses, such as driving under the influence, passing a stopped school bus, homicide by vehicle or reckless driving. Careless driving is not among those listed as serious offenses.

                If Judy had been cited for DUI, she could have been guilty since the parking lot of a fast food restaurant would be considered a trafficway. But since the citation was for “careless driving” and since this is not a serious traffic offense, she should not have been issued a ticket for this accident. In Marsico v. DiBileo, 796 A.2d 997 (2002), the Superior Court of Pennsylvania reversed a jury verdict in favor of the defendant because the trial judge had instructed the jury to apply the provisions of the vehicle code to an accident in a parking lot. The Superior Court ruled that while a parking lot is a “trafficway” for the purpose of violations of serious traffic offenses, a parking lot is not a “highway,” citing to other cases where the court had held that a parking lot is not a publicly maintained highway. A motorist in Pennsylvania cannot be guilty of careless driving for actions that occur in a parking lot of a shopping center or fast food restaurant.

                Judy was a client of our office. Although we do not normally handle routine traffic citations, because she was injured in the crash, we agreed to represent her at the hearing.  It was obvious that the police officer was unaware of Section 3101 of the Vehicle Code, but the judge recognized the error immediately and dismissed the charges against our client.