Jaywalking Was a Crime in Virginia for 100 Years... Until 2021

What Is Jaywalking & Why Is It Being Decriminalized in Virginia?

Jaywalking simply is when a pedestrian crosses a street or roadway outside of a suitable crossing point or crosswalk. The laws behind Jaywalking vary quite a lot between jurisdictions.

According to Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp, in Virginia, Jaywalking has been a crime for a century; until a law that was passed in 2021 that forbade law officers from charging, citing, or stopping any jaywalkers.

Introduced by Virginia Delegate Patrick Hope, D-Arlington, the new law aims to help law enforcement officers to focus on more serious offenses.

Jaywalking will still technically be illegal, but no police officer will be able to use it as the only reason to stop someone.

Duty Of Care for Motorists & Pedestrians

Most people would automatically assume the fault on the driver in a Jaywalking accident.

However, both motorists and pedestrians owe a duty to be careful to each other.

Both drivers and pedestrians must be alert and careful at all times when operating a vehicle or walking in a road with moving traffic to not cause an accident that might injure someone.

Being that both motorists & pedestrians owe a duty of care to each other, that means both parties could be negligent. It would come down to who exhibited the carelessness that caused the injury.

Virginia’s Pedestrian Laws

§ 46.2-923. How and where pedestrians to cross highways.

The law states that pedestrians shall only cross the road at intersections or marked crosswalks unless there are no such marked crosswalks at all. The law further states that law enforcement officers shall not stop or cite pedestrians for violating this section.

§ 46.2-924. Drivers to stop for pedestrians; installation of certain signs; penalty.

This law states that drivers of any vehicle shall yield the right-of-law to any pedestrian crossing the roadway or highway and remain stopped until the pedestrian has safely completed the cross.

§ 46.2-926. Pedestrians stepping into highway where they cannot be seen.

This law forbids pedestrians from stepping into a highway where they may not be easily visible by approaching vehicles.

Who’s At Fault if You Hit a Jaywalker?

Determining fault would vary greatly depending on your state’s laws. Some states follow contributory negligence, and some follow comparative negligence.

Contributory Negligence states that an injured person’s negligence in connection to an accident bars them from any financial recovery even if they’re not at fault. This basically means that if even a slight negligence from you has affected the accident, you won’t be eligible to receive damages.

This rule applies in: Alabama, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, and Washington D.C.

Comparative Negligence is divided into two parts:

1. Modified Comparative Negligence.
2. Pure Comparative Negligence.

Modified Comparative Negligence states that a plaintiff’s level of fault doesn’t exceed a certain threshold before they can recover any damages.

Example: If the threshold is 50%; as long as the plaintiff's level of fault does not exceed 50% they will receive damages. But if it is as much as 50.1% they recover nothing.

Pure Comparative Negligence states that as long as the plaintiff is not 100% at fault, they would still recover some damages.

Example: A pedestrian is jaywalking in a street that has “no crossing” signs and gets hit by a passing car. If the court finds the pedestrian 85% at fault and they suffer $100,000 in medical bills, they’d only be able to recover $15,000 from the driver.

What To Do If You’ve Been Injured in a Pedestrian Accident?

If you’ve been involved in a Jaywalking accident, depending on where you are and the facts of the matter, you might still be able to receive compensation - even if you were Jaywalking.

Speak to an expert pedestrian accident attorney and explain in detail your situation and your attorney would be able to show you your legal options for remedy.