In Florida, a person operating a motor vehicle is expected to know the rules of the road, which include knowing when to yield. For example, all vehicles must yield to a pedestrian, as pedestrians always have the right of way. A vehicle that is attempting to make a left-hand turn must yield to traffic traveling in the opposite direction. Drivers must also yield right of way to a bus traveling in the same direction that has signaled it is reentering traffic. These are some examples of laws regarding yielding. A citation for failure to yield typically results in a fine of $500. If failure to yield results in an accident involving injury, the fines are typically much higher and may also result in criminal charges such as reckless driving.
News 4 Jax reports that a driver has been cited in an accident that led to a Clay County Deputy’s death.
Last Wednesday, Stephen Schioppa was cited by the Florida Highway Patrol for failure to yield. The citation stems from a crash that occurred at about 11 a.m. on August 19, 2018. According to the citation, Schioppa was turning left from Blanding Boulevard onto Camp Francis Johnson Road.
Deputy Ben Zirbel was traveling south on Blanding when Schioppa turned in front of the deputy’s agency vehicle. The two vehicles collided. Zirbel suffered from catastrophic injuries that he eventually succumbed to.
A spokesperson for the Clay County Sheriff’s Office said that they would have no comment until the final report comes out. The report was expected to have been released at the end of last week.