MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. — Manatee County commissioners are looking at an ordinance to improve safety on the roads.
The conversation regarding the ordinance began after a story about a panhandler got some attention over the summer.
Ryan Bray says he offered a man at a Bradenton intersection $15 an hour to do some yard work, but the man refused. So, he made his own sign to warn drivers about what happened. Bray wanted a law to prevent panhandling at intersections.
Commissioners want to move forward with creating an ordinance that would keep people out of public roads and rights of way so they don't interfere with traffic and get hit. They also don't want people to wander out in the streets to panhandle or stand on the median.
Major Patrick Cassella is the enforcement bureau chief for the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office. He told 10News there have been complaints about aggressive panhandling.
“They’ve been coming up to the window. Some have been banging on the window, startling not just the driver, but some have kids in the vehicle," Cassella said. "They’ve been cussed at, used profanity, screaming at them why are they not going to donate money or give them money so this is where it’s now become escalating.”
The commissioners say they're concerned about a nearly 160 percent increase in crashes involving people being out in the street getting hit and either killed or having debilitating injuries.
“I think this ordinance is important,” Cassella said. “It’s becoming a safety issue to the drivers that are driving in Manatee County; so this is an ordinance that’s not only going to help just the aggressive panhandling, but we also have problems with pedestrians getting hit.”
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