(FORT BEND COUNTY) - The Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office will be conducting operations focused on enforcing and educating the public on the Lisa Torry Smith Act, commonly referred to as the Crosswalk Law. The law is named after Lisa Torry Smith, who lost her life to a motorist in a crosswalk while walking her son to school in 2017.
The law makes it an offense to fail to yield right of way to a pedestrian in a clearly marked crosswalk and requires drivers to come to a full stop for any pedestrians or cyclists who are in the intersection.
Operations will take place at different locations and times, with an emphasis on crosswalks in school zones. District Attorney investigators will be conducting the operations with assistance from other agencies.
District Attorney Brain Middleton drafted the proposed law on a promise to Lisa’s sister, Gina Torry, and convinced State Representative Ron Reynolds and State Senator Joan Huffman to sponsor the legislation in the 2021 Texas Legislature. In a rare act of bipartisanship, Senate Bill 1055 passed both houses of the legislature and was signed into law by Governor Abbott on June 18, 2021.
“A concerned parent reached out to my office after she was almost struck by a vehicle who ignored the fact that pedestrians were in the crosswalk,” said Middleton. “And worse, it was in a school zone when the crossing guard had already blown his whistle and turned on the crossing light. Drivers, careful attention near schools and other high-pedestrian areas won’t just save lives, it will keep you from taking a life.”
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