be careful… when this was first posted my response was deleted because I had little to no sympathy for the jay-walker… even when i stated that the police reaction was overbearing. it wasn’t far from this spot, in 1989, that a jaywalker caused me to wreck my scooter… causing my passenger to suffer a concussion. cross at the light folks… when it’s your turn.
I feel just as strongly for drivers who ignore people at crosswalks.
when I lived in San Jose, CA (willow glen) the police routinely stationed police near the crosswalks and if you didn’t yield to pedestrians standing at the curb you got a hefty ticket.
Sick of y’all’s Lone Star Neo-Fascist brand, txhoudini.
Ridiculous that SXSW should pretend Austin TX as some progressive oasis. You clowns elected Ted Cruz to the US Senate. The left should pressure move SXSW out of Texas. Maybe to Sanfe Fe, NM.
Wait, you mean there are cities where the middle class gets ticketed for jaywalking? Around here it’s mostly a tactic used against the ultra-poor, because their inability to pay the fines results in the possibility of arresting them for real.
Fact are so pesky. The police can be assholes, and they have guns. Should the police have hassled her for crossing between crosswalks? Maybe yes, maybe no. The police were within their legal right to ask her to identify herself because she was breaking the law. There might have been some initial confusion on her part, but she quickly recognized that she was interacting with the police. They did not demand ID, but rather that she identify herself, which she was legally obligated to do. She refused and freaked out, and that earned her a free B&D experience with some of Austin’s finest. If we want to give a biggest asshole award, I think there’s plenty of blame for everyone.
I’m all for some anarchism and retooling of our society, but until we start coming up with more productive things to say than, " cops are assholes," we’re not going to get very far.
I am, of two minds on jaywalking, on one hand I have walked against the lights, but it was only ever when it was safe to do so and I could do it at a leisurely pace. But on the other hand I’ve no sympathy for people darting across a busy road when there is a traffic light just a short distance away.
Ideally it would be best to fine someone for risky behaviour rather than everyone. But I guess one man’s risk is another man’s sure thing.
Well, that just makes me angry that he’s angry that people are angry!
I’m sure if he knew, he’d just be angry that I was angry that he was angry that people were angry, but that’d just make me angry that he was angry that I was angry that he was angry that people were angry.
If you’re a cop and I have my earphones on and my back is turned to you and you say my name while I am running, am I ignoring you and resisting arrest?
I lived in Austin for several years. I find it humorous that these same people that clamor for a large powerful government are miffed when said government uses its monopoly on the application of violence to punish people for questionable crimes like jaywalking.
I await BoingBoing nation to express its disdain for people who break the law in Austin with the save fervor as they did in the Bundy case.
Sometimes it’s a cultural thing. When I lived in Berlin about 5 years ago, I noticed no one really jaywalked. Young and old residents alike waited patiently at the crosswalk for the signal to cross, even if there were no cars around! Local friends explained to me this is the result of years of heavy enforcement/ticketing etc. from the police against jaywalking.
I’m intimately familiar with the neighborhood. In case you aren’t, that entire area of Austin is effectively UT campus. It is enormous both in size and in number of students. People / car / bike accidents are unfortunately common in the area. The sheer density of foot, bicycle, and car traffic makes it necessary to remind everyone to watch what they’re doing from time to time. Police routinely do foot / bike patrols, as well as extra traffic patrols there.
Oh my god. 70 feet. They should have shot on sight.
Sorry, but is this for real? I live in Germany where most pedestrians wait at red lights, even if there’s no vehicle in sight and people scold other people who do otherwise when there are children present.
And yet the thought that someone could get handcuffed because of “jaywalking” (we call that “crossing the street while it’s red”) would drop jaws over here.
At least in LA, it appears to be primarily targeted toward the middle and upper class, especially in downtown. It’s unclear whether it’s intended as a method of revenue generation, as some sort of passive aggressive backlash against the push toward pedestrian-friendly areas, or as a way to recover revenue from fewer cars being on the streets…
In downtown, if I recall, there is apparently an actual, recently-created police unit focused on jaywalking and on the even more bizarre and heinous crime: that of starting to cross crosswalks after the walk sign has turned to a flashing stop hand with a number. Yes, apparently, at least in LA, if you are at a crosswalk, and there are 20 seconds flashing on the sign, even if it would only take you 8 seconds to cross, it’s illegal to do so. The only legal way to cross the street is if you start during the few seconds when there is an actual walk sign.
There are now actually people being ticketed for this downtown, and the fine is apparently comparable to the few hundred dollar fine that is given for jaywalking.
No. My body is made of meat but your car/scooter is made of metal. I’ll cross wherever the fuck I want (but it wont cause an accident - I guarantee). Walking in traffic is not hard if you use those picture-detecty things in your face.
PS: had you made fun of her hipster running shoes I would have piled on. Go running barefoot in a park people, your joints will thank you.
Couldn’t see shit in that video to figure out what was going on. The incident was hidden from view. I heard her scream, but I’m not sure that’s enough to damn her, is it? For all we know, they grabbed her violently or something and it startled the hell out of her. You can’t see shit with that video to determine anything except perhaps to reinforce what you already want to believe, perhaps?
