So the other night I was at Regal Cenimas off of Route 7 and i decided to start doing donuts in the parking lot. Nobody was around but apparently a cop was watching me the whole time. I get onto route 7 and get pulled over for it...isnt there something that says you cannot get tickets like that in parking lots and private properties such as that. What do you guys think?

They can, and in many cases are invited to patrol private lots of malls.

Good luck with your defense.

"isnt there something that says you cannot get tickets like that in parking lots and private properties such as that."

Not really. You're probably screwed. What part of the code of VA or FFX Co were you cited under?

actualy parking lots are private property and i know for a fact that road signs such as stop signs do not have to be followed (you cant get pulled over for running a stop sign in a parking lot) i dont know about speeding but id call up a lawyer and ask him.

Depends on the parking lot it could be public property or sometimes the owners will give the police jurisdiction over it, I had this happen in an apartment complex I was in once.

Here is your homework, done.

Good luck.
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VA Code § 46.2-864. Reckless driving on parking lots, etc.

A person shall be guilty of reckless driving in Virginia who operates any motor vehicle at a speed or in a manner so as to endanger the life, limb, or property of any person:

1. On any driveway or premises of a church, school, recreational facility, or business property open to the public; or

2. On the premises of any industrial establishment providing parking space for customers, patrons, or employees; or

3. On any highway under construction or not yet open to the public.

and i decided to start doing donuts in the parking lot.

Wow, that was one heck of a decision you made there. Good job. Let us know what it feels like to get a 3,000 fine.

It comes under the reckless driving code, be prepared for the new big civil penalty of $1,000 plus whatever the judge throws at you. Maybe Dave Albo will take the case pro bono, since he is responsible for the fee, but I doubt it.

yep... you can be charged for Reckless driving, Hit + Run & DUI on private property. Lately, you see more properties like malls/apartment complexes giving permission to police departments to enfore all motor vehicle violoations provided they have VDOT approved signage. I've also read that the commonwealths office has decided that police can charge for class 1 & class 2 misdemeanors (ie. driving on suspended and no operators license) on private properties that are open to the public.

And recently Penny gross has been pushing HOA Boards in her jurisdiction to sign a letter giving the police the right to come on the HOA property and do whatever it is they do.

Radiophile Wrote:
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> And recently Penny gross has been pushing HOA
> Boards in her jurisdiction to sign a letter giving
> the police the right to come on the HOA property
> and do whatever it is they do.
______________________________________________________________


The Police have the "right" to come in to a neighborhood and patrol the streets since they are the property of the state (except in townhouse parking streets and some limited private roads).

What the letter does for the FCPD is, it allows them to come and patrol private areas and common grounds. Areas like tot-lots and trail networks.

Todd is an idiot.

We live in Fairfax County and across our property runs a right of way which allows those who own property above us to use our property to gain access to the public road. We have signs posted saying Private Drive, Private Property, No Trespassing and 10 MPH. Originally this driveways was just for this house and it runs the length of our property and at the edge of our Front yard.
Others above us think it is a freeway, I suppose, because they speed up and down it all day long and have been requested to please slow down. They do not and neither do their visitors. Is there anything we can do to get these people to be respectful and safe without installing several speed bumps? Thank you.

Todd

You broke the law. You pay the consequences of your actions. Since you are under 18 years old, I think your traffic record will be expunged, if you obey the law in the future. I doubt that you pay for your insurance; however, most insurance companies are quickly notified when such infractions occur. Premiums are usually raised.

Sparkles

You may wish to call your local police and advise them of this unsafe behavior. I have seen where the patrol cars will park in the area for a few days. This message works for awhile. Another thought, if you have the motivation: take some flash pictures of the offending vehicles and provide to the police department. I saw a cool response by the police, when they stopped a couple of teenagers in front of my house in the early hours of the morning and photographed them! Haven't seen them in the neighborhood since.

JohnnyMac Wrote:
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> actualy parking lots are private property and i
> know for a fact that road signs such as stop signs
> do not have to be followed (you cant get pulled
> over for running a stop sign in a parking lot) i
> dont know about speeding but id call up a lawyer
> and ask him.


Your knowledge of facts are wrong my friend. I live in a community that is nothing but "private" streets". Our association has authorized the police department to enforce the law to the full extent; which includes speeding, running stop signs. loitering etc.

Oh... take me back to the good ole days when doing donuts in a parking lot was just good ole teenage fun and the term muscle car meant something.*sigh*

In my day cops just pulled into the parking and gave us a dirty look. It was enough to scare the hell out of us.

You'll never convince me that doing donuts in a parking lot is a wreckless driving ticket. I hope the judge throws out the ticket.

Your knowledge of facts are wrong my friend. I live in a community that is nothing but "private" streets". Our association has authorized the police department to enforce the law to the full extent; which includes speeding, running stop signs. loitering etc.

He's right except in instances such as yours. If some doofus runs a stop sign in a private parking lot and hits your car, the police won't even come out and it's up to insurance companies to resolve the issue. I speak from experience.

Anyway, they won't come out UNLESS the police have been given permission to do enforcement on that property, though I've never heard of this happening outside of speed enforcement. I would also be concerned as to whether the dispatcher who answers the police non-emergency number may be able to confirm quickly whether the police have been given enforcement power on a specific piece of private property.

being that its 2 months later... what happened to todd? court should have happened by now (or soon?).. unless theres a continuation involved..

i'm curious if the new fees applied to his "reckless"



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/25/2007 10:53AM by bdimag.

MBF Wrote:
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> Anyway, they won't come out UNLESS the police have
> been given permission to do enforcement on that
> property, though I've never heard of this
> happening outside of speed enforcement. I would
> also be concerned as to whether the dispatcher who
> answers the police non-emergency number may be
> able to confirm quickly whether the police have
> been given enforcement power on a specific piece
> of private property.

The entire police department has been given a copy of the notarized letter from our Community Association advising them that they have the right to enforce the law to the full extent inside our community as they do outside. This includes not only traffic violations, but any and all crimes...

In addition, we have lamanated this letter and provided a copy to all residents in our community, so that IF a police officer states that they do not have the authority to act should they receive a call, the resident can provide the copy for them to read and not delay any action the officer needs to take at the time of the incident.

The entire police department has been given a copy of the notarized letter from our Community Association advising them that they have the right to enforce the law to the full extent inside our community as they do outside. This includes not only traffic violations, but any and all crimes...

In addition, we have lamanated this letter and provided a copy to all residents in our community, so that IF a police officer states that they do not have the authority to act should they receive a call, the resident can provide the copy for them to read and not delay any action the officer needs to take at the time of the incident.

I understand and have heard of HOAs doing that before. I'm just saying the person who answers 703-691-2131 may not have that information handy.

That's so dumb, they have much better things to do than fine people for doing doughnuts. What about all the murders and shootings happening around us, hello Fairfax PD??

Okay, Todd, what was the outcome of your transgression?

bdimag Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> being that its 2 months later... what happened to
> todd? court should have happened by now (or
> soon?).. unless theres a continuation involved..
>
> i'm curious if the new fees applied to his
> "reckless"


I'd like to know what happened too. I'm sure the new Civil Fees applied for Reckless Driving, so Todd will be paying for Donuts for 3 years.