Although a little known fact, one in four drivers in Florida involved in a motor vehicle accident in which someone is injured or killed leaves the scene, according to a recent Gainesville Sun newspaper report. This proportion is even higher in cases where a pedestrian or cyclist is hit by a car, according to statistics from the Florida Highway Patrol. However, what many of these fleeing drivers do not realize is that by leaving the scene of an accident in which someone has been injured or killed, the driver is committing a felony under Florida law. This is such a serious matter that Florida law imposes stiff criminal penalties of prison time and mandatory loss of a driver’s license for an extended period for a motorist convicted of this offense. Leaving the scene of the accident can be among the worst mistakes you can make as a Florida driver.
Florida Criminal Law Regarding Leaving the Scene of an Accident
Florida law imposes stringent statutory duties on motorists who have been involved in an accident. If the accident caused injury or death to another person, a driver is required to stop his or her vehicle at the scene of the crash; give his or her name, address, and vehicle registration number to the other driver; provide his or her license, registration, address, and other information to any investigating police officers; render reasonable assistance if it is clear another party to the accident needs medical treatment; and, finally, immediately report the crash to the applicable police or sheriff’s office.
The penalties for not following these required procedures can be very steep indeed. As described in a Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles page devoted to Florida hit-and-run laws, the penalties associated with leaving the scene of an accident in which someone is injured or killed changed significantly in 2014 with the passage of the Aaron Cohen Life Protection Act. This Act was passed by the Florida Legislature in response to the death of a 31-year-old father of two young children in central Florida who was killed by a drunk driver who fled the accident scene and only received two years in prison as a result. Now, the penalties for hit-and-run drivers are much steeper. If the crash involved injuries to another person, a motorist who flees an accident scene can be charged with a third-degree felony, with penalties of up to five years in prison or five years of probation, and a $5,000 fine. If the crash involved a death, a driver who fled the scene faces a mandatory minimum of four years in prison (with the possibility of a sentence of up to 30 years in prison) and a $10,000 fine. In all hit-and-run cases involving death or injury, the fleeing driver’s license is also revoked for a minimum of three years.
Stick Around if You Have Been Involved in a Motor Vehicle Accident in Florida
If you have just been involved in an accident, particularly one in which someone was injured or killed, and you perceive yourself to have been at fault, then it is understandable that you may be afraid of what may happen to you if you stay at the scene of the accident and wait for police to arrive. You may think there is no way that police will catch you if you can just get away from the scene of an accident quickly enough. However, you have no way of knowing whether an eyewitness may have jotted down your license plate, a nearby store may have had a security camera that caught the events on video surveillance, or whether an off-duty police officer saw the whole thing from two cars behind you. Fleeing the scene of an accident is never a good idea, and the stringent laws against doing so in Florida only make this more true.
On the contrary, if you choose to stay at the scene of the accident, even if you hit and injured someone, then the likely ramifications are much less severe than if you flee. Although you could be issued a citation for a traffic offense, this usually will carry with it the possibility of paying several hundred dollars in fines and maybe several points on your driver’s license. The typical motor vehicle accident will not result in criminal charges unless you have been drinking or your actions in causing the accident were particularly egregious. However, remaining at the scene of the accident would not lead to the automatic loss of your driver’s license for a minimum of three years and the possibility of spending years of your life incarcerated simply because you panicked and left the scene. Instead of a lifetime of regret and several years without a way to get around afterwards, remain at the scene of the accident.
Contact Experienced West Palm Beach Criminal Defense Attorney Bryan Raymond if You Have Been Arrested for or Charged with Leaving the Scene of an Accident in Palm Beach County
However, even if you chose to flee the scene of an accident in which someone was injured or killed, not all hope is lost. If you have been arrested or charged with fleeing the scene of a motor vehicle accident in Palm Beach County, West Palm Beach criminal defense attorney Bryan Raymond is experienced in representing criminal defendants in these situations and are now attempting to deal with the consequences. Bryan believes in aggressive representation, but he also has good relationships with both law enforcement and prosecutors and can work to negotiate a plea deal or reduced charges in response to cases in which all hope may seem to be lost. Therefore, if you have been accused of a hit and run in Palm Beach County, contact experienced West Palm Beach criminal defense attorney Bryan Raymond today at (561) 682-1115 or [email protected].
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