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# Pedestrian sting yields violators
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/pedestrian-sting-yields-violators/
- Published: 2002-05-17T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T00:17:16.000Z
- Author: Carolyn Sackariason
- Tags: Crime, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*Woman on cell phone nearly hits one officer*

Police nabbed more than a half-dozen motorists Thursday during a pedestrian sting operation on Wilshire Boulevard.

The sting consisted of two plain-clothed officers from the Santa Monica Police Department’s traffic enforcement division walking back and forth across Wilshire Boulevard at Franklin Street in a crosswalk.

If any motorist failed to yield, motorcycle officers waiting nearby were given the signal to pull them over.

Within 40 minutes, police cited seven motorists for failing to yield in the crosswalk — a $103 fine and one point off their driving records.

Two of the violators Thursday were talking on their cell phones. One such driver didn’t even realize she had nearly hit Chris Dawson, a SMPD traffic investigator who helped conduct the sting.

“I’ve had to dive out of the way from a car in a full frontal lock-up,” he said. “Nothing like having a 4,000-pound car coming at you.”

On other occasions, car mirrors have brushed the buttons on his shirt.

The SMPD conducts the stings not only to enforce the law, but also to educate the public about pedestrian safety. There were 130 pedestrian collisions last year, an 8 percent increase over 2000.

Many of those incidents occurred because motorists did not pay attention to people walking in crosswalks, or because they weren’t familiar with the law.

“Once the pedestrian steps onto the roadway, the pedestrian has the right-of-way,” said SMPD spokesman Lt. Frank Fabrega.

He added that pedestrians also have a responsibility to cross the street with a degree of care and should look before stepping into traffic.

Several people watched Thursday’s sting from in front of their offices, with a few personally thanking officers for their enforcement tactics.

Donna Weather, who works at a law firm on the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Franklin Street, said many of her co-workers cross the street several times a day because the parking garage is on the other side.

31B,“We have so many people in our office who nearly get hit right here,” Weather said. “(The motorists) flip us off like it’s our fault.”

The last scene of a pedestrian sting was 16th Street and Santa Monica Boulevard, where about 10 motorists were given tickets for not yielding to undercover officers. The sting operations are held throughout the city at random, Fabrega said.

“We would be happy if we came to every intersection and no one was pulled over,” he said. “That means we are doing our job.”

However as it is, many motorists will even change lanes to beat the pedestrian in the crosswalk, Fabrega said.

Dawson said there have been no fatalities yet this year, which could mean enforcement and education programs are working.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/051702-02_01.jpg)

(Photo: Carolyn Sackariason/Daily Press)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 17, 2002.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/051702.pdf?ref=smdp.com)