Will I be liable if a passengers in my car was caught urinating in state property?

Get Legal Help Today

Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save

secured lock Secured with SHA-256 Encryption

Will I be liable if a passengers in my car was caught urinating in state property?

Good evening,

Hope all is well. So here is the background story to my question. I will be
purposely vague about locations and name in an effort to protect my privacy.
Lets say hypothetically that I was driving down the highway in my personal car
coming from a nice day at the beach when one of my passengers whom I know but
is not related to memore like an in-law starts complaining that they need to
use the restroom. Having no rest stops near by I keep on driving and tell them
to hold it till we get to the nearest restroom. But when we get to the New Link Destination
lls
there is a little bit of a line and I slow down to a stop. In that moment the
person tells me they cant hold it any longer that they are going to see if
there is a bathroom by the tolls building, I tell him to wait but nevertheless
they open the door and leave. After knocking at the building by the tolls no
one answers so he goes around the building and takes care of his needs there.
Then an employee sees him and tells him something which I dont know. Then the
security guard comes out and stays looking till he gets in my car. After that
seeing what happened I pay my toll and pull over to the side of the road and
tell my passenger to come with me and talk to the security guard. I apologize
to the guard and explain he is and older gentleman and holding it could have
cause complications for his bladder, all the guard says is that there are
cameras watching and that those cameras are seeing my car. I tell the guard
that I am not responsible for the ‘peer’ ‘s actions the guard tells me to
explain that in court. So my question do you think that me as the driver in
this hypothetical situation would be held accountable in any way?

Thank you so much in advance for any advise you might be able to give me,

Asked on September 1, 2019 under Criminal Law, New Jersey

Answers:

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 4 years ago | Contributor

Technically, you could be liable as an "accomplice" if you knew what he was going to do and assisted or facilitated him in doing it. So if you do receive a summons and go to court, the issue will be whether the court believes you knew he was going to urinate in public or not.


IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.

Get Legal Help Today

Find the right lawyer for your legal issue.

secured lock Secured with SHA-256 Encryption