Why is it that street people -never use the crosswalk.

I nearly got my teenage ass kicked at a crosswalk:
A HS buddy I ran around with had an older brother with a very cool car: 64 Pontiac GTO.
I never missed an opportunity to cruise in it. It was a hot summer evening. Lots of people on porches and the sidewalks. We were sitting at a traffic signal and in front of us, a very obese woman was in the crosswalk.
Our driver turned to me and said "watch me hit this fat lady". Before I could react, he popped the clutch, the car jumped forward and knocked the fat chick down.
The resulting chain reaction was immediate and frightening. She regained her feet and began to beat on the hood of the car, screaming at the top of her lungs. Enraged witnesses showered the car inside and out with beer bottles and were quickly forming a lynch mob.
We barely escaped. What a dick move that was! I never rode with the dude again.

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Unfortunately, I think most states have laws that state the driver must yield to a pedestrian in the crosswalk wheteher or not the driver has a green light.

In Washington, it's against the law for pedestrians to step off the curb when the Don't Walk light is flashing, but they still have the right of way, if that makes any sense. I often have to make left turns in downtown Seattle, and when the Don't Walk is flashing is when you make left turns . . .except when a ped decides to make a run for it as it's counting down 3-2-1.