Q: Can I get into trouble for almost hitting a pedestrian and almost causing an accident at the same time?
I had the green light at an intersection, but not an arrow. As soon as a group of cars clear the road, I saw an opportunity to turn left, but I did not fully pay attention to the intersection. A high school student was crossing the road and didn't see whether she had the crosswalk light or not and was taking her time crossing. She was dressed in head to toe in all black with her hood on not paying attention to her surroundings. So I stopped just a foot or two away from her while still being in the intersection, and a black SUV going straight almost T-Boned me. A school bus was in the opposite lane I was turning into and probably caught the whole incident on film. Can the bus driver turn the almost-hit pedestrian & almost-accident footage to the police and will I get into trouble?
A: I am uncertain if you are worried about the footage being used for a personal injury lawsuit by the pedestrian or as grounds for giving you a traffic ticket. To answer your questions directly, though, yes, they could turn over the footage. It seems unlikely that the driver would turn over the footage to the police for traffic ticket purposes of their own accord; it also seems unlikely that that footage would be used after-the-fact to issue you a citation. For purposes of the personal injury case, an "almost-accident" is not the same as an accident. You can't be liable for un-caused damages. However, I would suggest you pay much closer attention while driving. Florida is notorious for pedestrian accidents and injuries. What was a close call this time could easily have been a badly injured or dead pedestrian.
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