Jaywalking Decriminalized Under Newly Signed California Law – Orange County Register

Under a new law, Californians can cross the street outside of a formal intersection without being issued a ticket.

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the Freedom to Walk Act on Friday, requiring pedestrians to be issued a ticket to jaywalk — or cross an intersection — only if there is “imminent risk of collision,” the release said.

The law, authored by San Francisco Assemblyman Phil Ting, goes into effect on January 1.

It amends the state vehicle code to “prohibit a peace officer from stopping a pedestrian for certain traffic violations unless a reasonably cautious person would realize there was an imminent threat of collision with a moving vehicle.”

A similar bill introduced by Ting in the previous legislature was defeated by Newsom, who said he was concerned it would “unintentionally reduce pedestrian safety”. However, the governor said at the time that “unequal enforcement of jaywalking laws and the use of minor offenses like this as an excuse to stop people of color…are unacceptable and must be addressed.”

Four years ago, Chinedu Okobi died after being repeatedly tased by San Mateo County Sheriff’s Deputies trying to arrest him for jaywalking in Millbrae. And in 2020, an Orange County sheriff’s deputy shot and killed Kurt Reinhold after pulling him over for alleged jaywalking. Both Okobi and Reinhold were black. No charges were brought against the deputies.