If your driving your car, can a private citizen tell you to stop to allow for the movement of heavy equipment?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
If your driving your car, can a private citizen tell you to stop to allow for the movement of heavy equipment?
I was driving to work one morning and a man backing up a tractor trailers motioned for me to stop. I told him I didn’t want to. I had time to get by the truck before it was even ready to start backing up. The man who wanted me to stop, walked in front of my car. and when I swerved to miss him, he walked in front of the car again. I rolled my window downs and told him to move out of the way I needed to get to work. The man in the truck was still sitting there. He wouldn’t move. I took my foot off the brake and my car rolled fwd and bumped him a little. I’ve been charged with simple battery and reckless conduct. What is reckless conduct?
Asked on August 24, 2010 under Criminal Law, Georgia
Answers:
M.T.G., Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
Reckless conduct under Georgia statute O.C.G.A. 16-5-60(b).361 is where a person harms or endangers the "bodily safety" of another person by disregarding a "substantial and unjustifiable risk" that his act would case harm and danger to the safety of another. The actions would substantially deviate from what is known as a "standard of care" that a reasonable person under the same circumstances would exercise. Basically you did not care or were indifferent to the safety of the person and you were operating a vehicle which, when used the way you did, was used in a dangerous manner. So I think that you may need to speak with an attorney on this matter as soon as you can.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.