Fact Finders: Can you get ticketed for blowing off stop signs in shopping centers?

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) - You need to have your head on a swivel in a crowded parking lot. Shopping centers often install stop signs near the entrance to big stores to improve safety. But Rob wants to know, can law enforcement ticket you for rolling through a stop sign on private property?

Springfield police and the Greene County Sheriff’s Office get right to the point. “It is not enforceable,” says Cris Swaters of the Springfield Police Department. “Because it’s private property.”

“We can’t enforce stop sign violations If the stop sign is on private property such as a grocery store parking lot,” adds Deputy Derek James of the Greene County Sheriff’s Office. “However, it is not a good idea to ignore these signs for a couple of reasons. First, being general safety, and second, a driver could possibly be held civilly liable if they ignore the sign and it results in an accident.”

And, in Georgia, an 18-year-old driver will face charges after recently hitting and killing a 4-year-old girl in a mall parking lot.

In the meantime, you can get a ticket to park in a handicapped parking space or the fire lane.

One other thing to consider from the Missouri State Highway Patrol. “As you leave the lot onto a highway,” reminds Samuel Carpenter of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. “That one counts as you would be cited for failing to yield to oncoming traffic if you caused a crash.”

Coming back to the viewer’s question, can they ticket you in a shopping center parking lot for rolling through a stop sign? The answer on this one is NO.

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