Michigan law, MCL 257.654 states that a “Funeral Procession” has the right of way in traffic over any other vehicle except for emergency vehicles. If an individual does not yield to a funeral procession, they could be charged with “Failure to yield to a funeral procession” which is a civil infraction and can have 2 points added to their driving record.
As funeral processions often have many cars, sometimes even upward of 25, an accident involving a funeral procession could be very dangerous. For these reasons, funeral procession charges are taken seriously by the law.
Michigan law lays out a description of a funeral procession as a group of cars that generally meet the following criteria:
- They are going to a burial site;
- There is a neon orange flag attached to the vehicles;
- The flag has a Cross, Star of David, or Crescent and Star printed on it in the color black;
- The flag has the word “funeral” printed on it in the color black;
- The cars at the back and front of the procession usually have 2 flags; and
- The cars’ headlights are usually on.
Although these laws seem simple enough to follow, they are often forgotten about by drivers that are in a hurry. Our skilled attorneys at La Grasso, Abdo & Silveri can help represent you in court if you are charged with a failure to yield to a funeral procession offense. Finding a resolution that can keep someone’s criminal record clean and keep you out of jail may be available.
If you would like to set up a consultation to discuss your case further, please feel free to contact us or call (586) 413-7777 at your earliest convenience.