State police target drivers who don't yield to Scott's Law for emergency workers

7/13/08
Chicago Tribune, United States

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The Truckers Report Merchandise

I am so against this law, cops should take responsibility in thier own actions on the side of the road.. This is simply a way to make money...
This is going to happen more often then not, what is the man supposed to do? panic and slam on his break? swerve to the left and run people of the road? ignorant law... The law simply will cause people more likely to panic and make bad decisions causing more of a hazard on the road... Again if a cop chooses to pull somebody off on the side of the Interstate, then it needs to be his responsibility for his safety... Every cop car has a PA if the victim is not in an area that is safe then the cop needs to instruct them to continue to a safer location.. If the victim does not pull far enough off the road and needs to get to the right a little more, then the cop needs to instruct them to do so using the PA... Then the cop need to position his car angled to the interstate giving him a safety zone... The problem is cops pull people over anywhere and its unsafe where they do pull people over, and how they pull people over... Sticking thier big butts across the white line and think everybody is supposed to yield to them because they are the LAW... Lose a little of that arrogance most cops have and practice safety a little more then they would have lower number of cops struck...

i agree ,truckerjo , the police should try a little harder to find a saffer place, espically get futher off of the road... plus i think we as drivers should try harder to make it safer for them by being more alert and slowing down more.. our trucks don't have 238 detroits or 250 cummins engines in them any more....

This isn't just for the police. It's for ALL emergency vehicles that are on the side of the road.

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Electile Dysfunction - The inability to get aroused over any of the presidential candidates.

The driver didn't see the cruiser or the lights? Inattentive driving. Sorry but generally speaking you should move over as best you can for any car or truck on the shoulder. The fact of the matter is that if he didn't see the lights OR the cruiser this guy wasn't paying attention. The ticket was earned.

I accidently ran a stop sign once and got a lovely ticket for it. I didn't see the stop sign. That doesn't mean I shouldn't have gotten a ticket, or that it was the stopsign trying to trick me into paying a fine for breaking the law.

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I am a Camaro Girl because IROC!

You have unlimited chances to go too slow, but only one to go too fast.

This law was enacted in TX a couple of years ago. It was mainly in response to several officers being killed in Ford Crown Vics that burst into flames after being struck while parked on side of road. Some of these guys were hit at over 80mph. Now you have to get over or slow to 20mph below posted limit. Most of the drivers who hit the cops were drunk or fell asleep and most were 4 wheelers not truck drivers. They are not as bad as IL yet, but they have issued a few tickets.

Well you proved a point and another reason why I dislike this law... most cops that are hit are do to impaired drivers ext...


I am sorry but I strongly disagree with this statement... Location plays a big part if your able to see somebody on the side of the road or not.. Hill, corner, trees, traffic ext... So many reason somebody may not see a vehicle on the side of the road till your basically right there next to it..
Throwing the fact that people slowing down 20 Mph on the Interstate bunching people up making it even more difficult to see threw ahead traffic... Now I totally agree people should make an effort in trying to get over but only if it is safe to do so, if you happen to come up on a vehicle that had been obstructed out of you view do to whatever reason, the last thing somebody should do is make a panic decision because people have that natural fear of the LAW... Threatening people with a ticket will result in that happening and makes the situation way worse then what it was, if they simply moved far left as possible (in thier lane if they could not change) and maintain speed avoiding bunching traffic up behind...

Slowing down causes impatient people to well be impatient.. we all have had those around us.. Now combine that impatient person jumping out because he can't see as well because an obstructed view then having a driver perform a panic maneuver at the same time..... how does that make things safer???? safer for who???? the cop who probably didn't follow any safety guidelines when pulling the victim over and putting himself a greater risk? So, i guess its okay to put the motorist at risk just to allow this cop to continue his unsafe habits when pulling people over....

I know it has happened to me and I was paying attention, a vehicle had been on the side of the road that I had not seen because my view had been obstructed...

as a firefighter/emt on my hometime, Scott's Law was long overdue. Too many people are in a big hurry and don't pay attention to what's going on. 99 out of 100 times we can't pick and choose where our rigs are going to be set up. It is a shame that people can't live with a law that saves the lives of those who protect us, especially in such a dangerous environment. I do agree that more education about the law(s) is needed, such as you don't have to slam on your brakes and wiggle over, but that a 10-15mph slow down will suffice.

I am one of those emergency people that have been almost struck by a vehicle on NUMEROUS occassions. The lights tend to draw the attention of the driver and they begin to look at the vehicles. However, many of them do not move over or even slow down. They are in a hurry and don't even pay attention.

You might be working to get someone out of a vehicle and need to get something off a rig or whatever. Alot of times we have no control of the location of the accident or even where the vehicles are finally placed for the event. It may seen ridiculous to you, but be on the side of the road and notice out of the corner of your eye that all traffic moves over and suddenly a 4 wheeler darts to the right and floors it and passes someone. This happens alot.

A volunteer firefighter was struck and severely injured on a call one night. They were putting everything back on the truck when they were struck by a vehicle that never moved over.

As a volunteer, I am paid nothing to risk my life to save or help someone. I really don't think the law is bad in that respect.

HOWEVER, I feel Illinois has done a very POOR job of informing the motoring public of the law. If you are unable to move over, you are to slow down. I have never heard of the actual amount of the slow down, but I believe it is up to the officer.

As a matter of safety, whenever I see a vehicle on the side, I try to get over because you never know. If it is a emergency vehicle I will turn signal and have almost come to a stop because of the unknown slow down rule.

I am not debating the fact that one should get over or not... I agree that one should move to the left if possible... I think slowing is dangerous because it make impatient people more likely to do something ignorant putting "MY LIFE" at risk... throwing in the panic people along with impatient people puts "MY LIFE" at greater risk... I feel their is always going to be that situation where your not going to be able to get over and do to obstructed view you not going to have time to slow unless you hit the breaks hard, How is that safe? is that my fault because my view was obstructed and had no time to safely react without possibly putting others at risk? these are the circumstances I am speaking about... I myself as a truck driver have pulled into the left lane for a cop on the should just to have a 4 wheeler nail it and pass me on the right while we pass the cop... These are the people who make the road unsafe, these are the people thrown in with people panicking who put "MY LIFE" at a greater risk cause of the law..

Emergency workers job is a risky one, I know.. I as well have spent many hours out on the side of the interstate, not as an emergency worker but as a construction worker and a road service tech... So, i know what it feels like and I took every precaution I could to keep myself safe... But I still say the law puts MORE people at risk with the above scenarios.....