Ticketed for riding wheelchair on street w/o sidewalk??

[therock1811]

http://www.themilwaukeechannel.com/news ... ?qs=1;bp=t" target="_blank

WEST BEND, Wis. -- Andrew Schneider is in a wheelchair, but doesn't let his disability get in the way.

His travels last week took him on a West Bend road that didn't have sidewalks. Some drivers didn't think that was a good idea and called police.

An officer stopped Schneider, but didn't get cooperation. Schneider said he didn't do what the officer said because he felt that he wasn't doing anything wrong and shouldn't have been pulled over.

Comment - I'll let the S2K community decide this one themselves, but personally - this man has a right to ride wherever he needs to...grass doesn't exactly accomodate wheelchairs for some people. I've not once been pulled over and written a ticket. On the other hand - if the ticket was in fact for not following the directions(which I am not so sure it was), I don't disagree with the officers.

[Tstormwatcher]

I agree with the officer, he was belligerant and not cooperative with the cop and besides, unless the street was a side street which it probably wasn't, he should not hve been on it.

[vbhoutex]

The man was clearly in the wrong for refusing to give the officer his name. He was given no citation for using his wheelchair on the street. In this case I agree with the officer.

One way to help resolve the situation is for Mr. Sdhneider to advocate for more sidewalks or other transportation modes in his area if they are not available. To me the big concern was for his safety when the police were called. If it wasn't during the day or was during dusk then he would have definitely been in danger.
As you well know from personal experience Jeremy, people do not pay enough attention to what is going on around them!!!

[O Town]

Yeah the citation was for obstructing an officer not actually riding on the road. I agree with the officer in that regard he should have answered him, but I think people in wheelchairs should ride where ever they feel they need to. People ride bikes down the road all the time right? And no officer feels the need to follow my kids so they don't get hit by cars do they? I dunno I don't think anyone should have called the police to begin with, I mean hes a grown person and if wants to take that risk by riding in the road so be it.

[Regit]

I can't see that the officer did anything wrong. Schneider was a threat to public safety.

Furthermore, he is wrong that every person has the right to use the roads as they please. It's a privilege to use them, not a right, and the government decides how they can be used.

[Terrell]

I'm inclined to think that the officer is being a bit of an ass in this situation. If the disabled person doesn't want to be helped, I think it's wrong to try and force it on him. The ticket according to the OP's article wasn't for riding his wheelchair in the street, it was for not co-operating with the officer. I do think though that they should construct sidewalks on most public roads.

[olddude]

Sorry Mr. Schnider, you lose this one. I agree in principle with your use of public roadways but your civil disobidence will still get you this ticket.

[Derek Ortt]

side with the officer. He was placing himself in danger and did not cooperate with the officer. Probably could have been taken in for non cooperation

[therock1811]

Seems majority says the officer was in the right. I don't disagree so much with it as I did. However - there's a possibility that there wasn't enough of a shoulder to allow him to travel safely and he was just in a rush to get out of that area. Once he got home he could (and should) have complied with the officer's demand.

[MSRobi911]

Depending on the state where he was "Rules of the Road", if it had been Mississippi he could have also been charged with obstruction of traffic.

Mary

[azsnowman]

You can guess my vote

Yes...he should have received a citation for not giving his name, in Az. it's called obstruction of justice, which is a class 3 misdemeanor, that's the issue, not whether he was right in using his wheelchair!

We have an elderly lady here in town that basically does the same thing, I cannot TELL you HOW many 911 calls we receive here at the station regarding this ol' gal. We don't cite her, we stop traffic, allow her to cross the road (not too many cross walks in Bubba and Jethro land) and she goes about her merry way!

[gtalum]

Yes...he should have received a citation for not giving his name, in Az. it's called obstruction of justice, which is a class 3 misdemeanor, that's the issue, not whether he was right in using his wheelchair!

Just for my own education, I wonder if Florida is one of the 18 states with the fascist law requiring a citizen to give his name to the police when asked... I'm going to check.

[azsnowman]

Yes...he should have received a citation for not giving his name, in Az. it's called obstruction of justice, which is a class 3 misdemeanor, that's the issue, not whether he was right in using his wheelchair!

Just for my own education, I wonder if Florida is one of the 18 states with the fascist law requiring a citizen to give his name to the police when asked... I'm going to check.

You might call your local PD and ask the Facist Dictator that we in law enforcement call a Police Chief!

[gtalum]

You might call your local PD and ask the Facist Dictator that we in law enforcement call a Police Chief!

The cops, even the chief, are just doing their jobs. You have to enforce the laws. It's the legislature (and the USSC) that is to blame when laws like that get passed (and upheld).

[therock1811]

If it was for obstruction of justice, then I don't blame the cop. I questioned it at first only because of the circumstances. By law, yes you have to stop - but if you feel you are in danger, you can ask them to follow you to a safe location - in this case, while I cannot condone the man's actions when he arrived home, I also can't condemn him for not stopping when originally asked on the road.

[MSRobi911]

You can guess my vote

Yes...he should have received a citation for not giving his name, in Az. it's called obstruction of justice, which is a class 3 misdemeanor, that's the issue, not whether he was right in using his wheelchair!

We have an elderly lady here in town that basically does the same thing, I cannot TELL you HOW many 911 calls we receive here at the station regarding this ol' gal. We don't cite her, we stop traffic, allow her to cross the road (not too many cross walks in Bubba and Jethro land) and she goes about her merry way!

When I first asked my husband about this, he said they had a man out in the county (he is a Deputy Sheriff) that rides his wheelchair right down the middle of the busiest street in this big subdivision. They get so many phone calls and they have asked him repeatedly not to do this, but he does it just to make the folks mad (not my husbands words..hehehehe ) The speed limit is 45 so you know folks are going at least 50 to 55 if not faster and he has caused several accidents and has been lucky so far in not getting killed. I guess you have a couple in all towns in anyplace USA!

Mary

[gtalum]

I really hope this guy turns around and sues this town under the ADA.

[vbhoutex]

I really hope this guy turns around and sues this town under the ADA.

I'm not sure he has a case here, but like I said earlier he definitely needs to advocate for a safer environment for the disabled in his area. A lawsuit might just get them off their duffs.

[Dionne]

The cop did the right thing by following and protecting from collision. But I think the cop should have let him slide.

It's not uncommon to see motorized wheelchairs being used on city streets. It is dangerous. Equally dangerous are joggers that use the streets when there are existing sidewalks.

What scares me the most is that what if I was the driver that hit one of these folks? That would be a huge bummer.

[gtalum]

I really hope this guy turns around and sues this town under the ADA.

I'm not sure he has a case here, but like I said earlier he definitely needs to advocate for a safer environment for the disabled in his area. A lawsuit might just get them off their duffs.

I think he does have a case. There are no sidewalks in the area where he was stopped. The city has now officially gone on record saying that wheelchairs are not allowed on its streets. Thus they have made certain areas of their city off-limits to the handicapped. That is a direct violation of the ADA.