Fleeing an accident scene without reporting or checking on the injured to provide first aid or help them seek treatment is a serious criminal violation. You risk hit-and-run charges. When arrested for the offense, you will attract misdemeanor or felony charges contingent on the case’s facts.

Whatever the preferred charge, a guilty verdict will attract life-changing penalties. So, you need a competent criminal defense attorney to help you build a solid case for an acquittal or charge reduction. At the Virginia Criminal Attorney, we can tailor criminal defenses based on your case’s facts for a fair verdict in Fairfax and the Northern Virginia area.

Possible Charges for a Hit and Run Accident

Hit-and-run accidents, also called leaving the accident scene, happen when you fail to identify yourself and check on other parties involved. You do not have to be liable for the accident to face these charges. Besides, the accidents involve more than just vehicles. It could involve a motorist hitting property, a motorcycle, or a pedestrian. Additionally, you will face the charges if you are 16 or older, were involved in an accident, and did not stop or report the accident within 24 hours. The charges you are likely to face for fleeing the accident scene after a crash are:

Virginia Code (VC) § 46.2-894

Per § 46.2-894 of the VC, a driver, whether or not they are to blame for an accident, must stop at an accident scene if the collision has resulted in property damage or personal injuries. After stopping, the driver must exchange contact and car details with other motorists and passengers involved in the crash. If the accident causes property damage, the driver should exchange information with the property's custodian. If law enforcement reports to the scene, the driver should also share the details and events leading to the crash with law enforcement. Stopping is also encouraged to check on the injured and assist them in receiving emergency medical care. You risk charges under this section when you decline to stop after an accident resulting in injuries or property damage.

VC § 46.2-895

Drivers are not the only people who have legal responsibility after an accident. § 46.2-895 requires the passengers. Per this section, when a driver flees the crash scene, the passengers in the vehicle have a legal duty to report the accident to law enforcement within twenty-four hours; otherwise, they will attract criminal charges.

VC § 46.2-896

Some accidents do not cause any injuries or deaths. However, this does not remove the legal responsibility to report the accident. Per § 46.2-896, you should stop and try to find a property or vehicle custodian or owner when you are involved in an accident with an unattended car or property. When you cannot locate or trace the owner or custodian after stopping, you can leave the scene, but ensure you leave a note behind with your information, like physical address, name, vehicle registration number, and details of your driver’s license. You should leave the note in a conspicuous place that catches the eye of any individual concerned with the property damage. Besides, you should report the crash to the local law enforcers within twenty-four hours.

VC § 46.2-897

§46.2-897 imposes a legal obligation on car occupants to report an accident when the driver fails to stop after damaging unattended vehicles or property. Any passenger or occupant in the car who is 16 or older when the accident happens must report it within 24 hours if they disregard their legal obligation to stop and identify themselves.

When reporting an accident to law enforcement as a driver or passenger, ensure that you state your name, the time, the date, and the location of the crash. Additionally, you must give a detailed description of the car or property damaged in the accident.

As a driver or passenger, you cannot face charges for violation of any of these sections if, after the accident, you suffered severe injuries. The law exempts you from complying with these legal responsibilities and instead seeks immediate medical attention. However, once you recover, you should report the collision. Also, you should attempt to trace the custodians or owners of property damaged in the accident that left you with serious injuries to exchange contact information, car registration, and DL details.

Virginia Code defines an accident in these sections as physical contact between your car and other cars, a pedestrian, property, or an object at the crash scene, leading to an unwanted result that could have been prevented. Also, the accused driver must have been the proximate cause of the crash. The law takes effect regardless of the extent of the damage caused and whether the accident happened on a freeway, public road, or private road.

Hit and Run Elements the DA Must Prove

§46.2-894 makes it a crime for a driver to fail to stop at an accident scene when someone has been injured or property damaged. When you flee the scene without complying with your legal obligations, the law assumes that you were avoiding an arrest for drunk or drugged driving, you were operating the car without a valid license, or you were driving without insurance. The prosecutor cannot rely on these assumptions to convict you of the offense.

To secure a guilty verdict, the Virginia prosecutor handling your case must demonstrate all the facts beyond a reasonable doubt. The elements they should prove are:

  • You drove a car that was involved in an accident
  • The accident caused injuries, death, or property damage
  • You knew or ought to have known that the accident had caused property damage or injuries to other road users.
  • You willfully declined to stop at the scene to exchange information, check on the injured, or trace the owner of unattended property damaged by the property.
  • You are a passenger at least 16 years old who failed to report an accident within 24 hours after your driver could not stop.

Your obligation at the collision scene stands regardless of the liable party. Also, the prosecutor must demonstrate that you did not comply with any legal obligations stipulated under the law after a car accident.

Hit and Run Guilty Verdict Penalties

The penalties you will face when the court convicts you of leaving the scene after an accident without identifying yourself or helping the injured depend on the following factors:

  • Whether you were an occupant or driver in the car
  • Whether someone obtained injuries or died from the crash
  • The cost of property or vehicle damage
  • Whether the car or object damaged in the collision was attended or unattended

The penalties you will face are classified depending on your charge type as follows:

  1. Class 5 Felony

When you were the person behind the wheel when the accident happened, causing property loss of at most $1,000, personal injuries, or fatalities, the prosecutor will charge you with a class 5 felony. A guilty verdict for this type of charge attracts 12 to 120 months of incarceration and fines of no more than $2,500.

  1. Class 6 Felony

When you were an occupant in an automobile involved in a hit and run collision causing death or injuries or property destruction to an attended car or property valued at least $1,000, you will face class 6 felony charges. You will attract 12 to 60 months of jail incarceration and at most $2,500 in court fines when found guilty of the offense.

  1. Driver Misdemeanor Charges

You will face class 1 misdemeanor charges if you drove a car involved in an accident that reported no more than $1,000 in attended property damage or at least $250 in unattended property damage. A conviction for this misdemeanor violation attracts no more than $2,500 in monetary court fines and jail incarceration not exceeding 12 months. When the damage to the unattended vehicle or object does not surpass $250, the offense is classified as a class 4 misdemeanor, whose conviction is punishable by a monetary fine of at most $250.

  1. Passenger or Car Occupant Misdemeanor Charges

Passengers 16 or older are legally obligated to report an accident if the driver fails to comply. If the car you are occupying causes a hit and run collision that causes damage to property or a vehicle whose custodian is present, you face class 1 misdemeanor charges regardless of the extent of the damage. If the damage is less than $250 and the owner or custodian could not be traced, you face class 4 misdemeanor charges, whose guilty verdict attracts a court monetary fine of $250 and no jail incarceration.

Another punishment for the violation is license suspension. You risk six months of DL withdrawal or suspension for damaging attended or unattended property or objects whose damage is valued at $500. The suspension will increase to twelve months if the conviction is for fleeing the scene after causing injuries or deaths.

When you have at least three prior convictions for § 46.2-894 violations, you risk a five-year suspension of your driving privileges regardless of whether you were a passenger or driver or whether the object or car was attended or unattended.

The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) will also add demerit points to your record after conviction for the driving offense. You will receive higher demerit points after a conviction for fleeing an accident scene, adversely impacting your DL and increasing your license suspension if you meet the set criteria.

Another collateral consequence of a guilty verdict is a permanent criminal record that haunts you in the future after completing your sentence. The record will appear whenever someone runs background checks, denying you many opportunities, like employment, promotion, college admission, and apartment leasing. Also, if you have a career reputation, a conviction will dent it.

Additionally, a guilty verdict will have financial consequences. A charge for fleeing an accident scene makes you a high-risk client. Therefore, insurance companies will revise your premiums upwards, significantly increasing your insurance cost. Again, the accident victim can sue you in a civil court after the conviction for the injuries or property damage. If you were insured when the accident happened, the insurer can cover some of the costs up to your policy's limit. You will pay the remaining amount from your pocket. If you exhibited reckless conduct, the plaintiff can seek punitive damages.

The judge can even order victim restitution. This is in addition to the criminal penalties and civil judgment.

Expectations After Charges for Fleeing the Scene After an Accident

Typically, the victims or bystanders of the hit-and-run accident report it to law enforcement. The police conduct investigations to trace or identify the vehicle and driver involved in the accident. Once the perpetrator is identified, the police obtain a warrant to find and detain the perpetrator. After arrest, you will be booked and processed while awaiting an arraignment hearing. In the proceeding, the judge reads your charges and rights, then allows you to enter a plea.

You need the legal guidance of your attorney for driving offenses during the proceeding to avoid pleading guilty or no contest. An experienced attorney will also negotiate a favorable plea deal where you plead guilty to an offense in exchange for a reduced charge or penalty. For instance, if you face felony charges, the prosecutor can negotiate with the prosecutor to reduce the charge to a misdemeanor, which carries lesser penalties upon sentencing.

If the case reaches trial, the court will hold a bench proceeding where the judge listens to the facts from the opposing sides and issues a verdict. Alternatively, you can opt for a jury trial where jurors listen to the facts of the case and come up with a decision. Jury trials are unpredictable, and you risk a harsh punishment if found guilty; hence, the need to opt for the bench trial.

The process of a felony count begins at the district court. However, the circuit court can also handle the case if the district court finds you liable for failure to comply with § 46.2-894 and forwards your file to a jury that rules on whether the case should be adjudicated in the circuit court. If you receive an indictment from the jury, the case is transferred to the circuit court for adjudication.

Hit and Run Defenses

Your defense attorney must present facts to poke holes in the prosecution’s evidence to convince the court to reduce the charges or drop the case. The defense strategy the attorney will apply in the case depends on the circumstances. The standard defenses you should expect the attorney to mount are:

You were Not a Driver or Passenger in the Vehicle

The first argument your attorney can make is that you were not operating or occupying the car when the alleged accident happened. You can argue that someone stole or took your vehicle without your knowledge. The evidence will be held in court if you have an alibi to prove that you were elsewhere when the accident happened. Besides, you can present the police report you filed after the theft to prove you were not the party driving or occupying the car.

You Suffered Serious Injuries that Prevented you From Performing your Legal Duties

Your attorney can also assert that when the accident occurred, you sustained severe injuries and had to seek immediate medical attention; hence, you could not comply with the legal provisions after the accident. You will require a medical report to show that you sustained injuries linked to the accident and argue that the injuries impaired your capacity to undertake legal responsibilities. Additionally, you should demonstrate that after your recovery, you made efforts to trace the owner of the damaged property, or you reported the accident to the authorities.

You were Unaware you Caused An Accident or Damaged Property

One of the crucial elements that the attorney proves is knowledge of involvement in an accident and opting to flee instead of stopping. So, if you were unaware of the accident, you cannot be held criminally liable for not stopping at the scene. Nevertheless, the damage caused by the accident must be so minimal that you could not notice it. If the damage to property or injuries caused were severe, you cannot claim that you did not know you were involved in an accident. The defense will work if you hit someone's pet or dog. If there is evidence to support the argument that you did not notice the accident and a sober person in your position could not, the charges against you will be dropped or reduced.

You did Not Deliberately Flee the Scene

Another critical element prosecutors must prove is that you willfully left the scene after an accident without complying with the requirements of the law. Therefore, you can defend yourself by arguing that the hit and run was not willful. Your attorney will support this defense by claiming that you knocked down a pedestrian and bystanders were baying for your blood or demanding punishment, and therefore, you could not stop. You must provide evidence to show that the scene was unsafe for you to stop and that you made efforts to comply after failing to stop by reporting the accident to the nearest local police station.

The Arresting Officers Engaged in Misconduct

Even if you caused an accident and fled the scene, the police must follow standard procedures during investigations and subsequent arrest. If the police disregarded the set guidelines for arrest and evidence gathering, you can contend misconduct by the officers. When you do and provide evidence, the evidence gathered unlawfully will be dismissed, leading to a charge dismissal or reduction.

You risk arrest and criminal charges if you cause an accident and leave the scene without checking on the injured or exchanging information. Therefore, you must be proactive and partner with an experienced attorney for driving offenses. The legal representative will know some of the measures that they can employ early and use them as mitigating factors in the case, depending on the circumstances of your case. The attorney will advise you to enroll in defensive driving classes or participate in community labor. Attending and completing defensive driving classes demonstrates to the court that you intend to change and become a responsible driver without the court’s intervention. Even though this will not prevent a conviction, it will compel the judge to impose lenient penalties.

Appealing a Hit and Run Sentence

Even after a spirited fight against the charges, the facts could be against you, leading to a conviction. However, if you are unsatisfied with the decision and believe that you have been wrongfully convicted, you can appeal the decision of the lower court in a higher court. You are not guaranteed a favorable outcome in the appeal. You could face harsher penalties for appealing. Therefore, discuss the verdict with your attorney and decide if appealing the verdict is suitable.

The appeal process hinges on the type of charge you lost in the lower court. If you lost a misdemeanor charge, you have an automatic privilege for a second trial in the circuit court. This is advantageous because you can petition the court to hear your case in a jury instead of a bench trial.

If you were convicted of a felony in the lower court, you will file your appeal with the Virginia appellate court. The court reviews the evidence used for the conviction in the lower court and decides whether to change the sentence. Appeals in the appellate court are challenging and can take a long time before a verdict. However, they are worth the trial if your legal representative recommends it.

The court can only appeal the ruling by the lower court if the judge handling the case relied on improper laws, abused their legal discretion, abused their capacity to issue judgments, or relied on the wrong and misleading facts to issue an unfavorable verdict.

Find an Experienced Driving Offenses Attorney Near Me

Considering the harsh legal penalties and collateral consequences of a hit-and-run conviction, you should not represent yourself in court, as it increases the likelihood of an unfavorable verdict. At the Virginia Criminal Attorney, we have experienced driving offenses attorneys who will assist you in contesting the charges. Call us at 703-718-5533 to learn what to expect in the criminal hearing and how we can help in securing a favorable outcome in Northern Virginia and Fairfax City.