Hit and Run cases are usually about hearing both sides of the story. Someone may hit another vehicle and be looking for a place to park. That is when someone looks through the window and assumes the person is trying to flee the scene.
I have also seen the driver of a vehicle not know they clipped the mirror of another car as it was driving down a narrow street. The police show up at their door already believing the person volitionally left the scene before the door opens.
Finally, there are situations when someone hit another vehicle and when they got out the other driver was F-bombing and yelling at them to the point they felt threatened.
As a former senior prosecutor, hit and run cases is about examining the facts and hearing ALL sides of the story.
These charges can and often are reduced. How? Definitely not by walking in court and thinking it will happen. It happens by examining the facts and showing that you did not leave or explain what actually happen. Heck, someone may not have even reasonably known they had a collision.
I will explain a little about the hit and run charge.
You’ve been in a traffic accident in San Diego, and maybe it even wasn’t your fault. You may have panicked, or didn’t know where to stop or who to contact, and you left the scene of a collision without exchanging information with the other driver. Maybe you felt like you had to get out of the situation. Heck, you may not have even realized an accident occurred. What do you do now? Call Attorney Mark Deniz at 858-751-4384.
San Diego Hit and Run Attorney Mark Deniz has represented many clients facing local hit and run charges. He is familiar with the differences of court strategies and approaches for hit and run cases in San Diego. He is familiar with the applicable law, effective strategies for hit and run charges, and, in some situations, works on resolving them “civilly,” prior to any criminal charges being filed. Significantly, this “civil” option may only be available for a short time, before the prosecutor has decided to file charges or not.
Hit and run cases can occur for many different reasons. Don’t make your situation worse by trying to resolve it on your own. Call the Law Offices of Mark Deniz to find out how he can help you start the process of resolving your situation at 858-751-4384 now!
California Vehicle Code sections 20001 and 20002, which apply to hit and run incidents in San Diego indicate that, “The driver of any vehicle involved in an accident resulting in injury to any person, or in the death of a person, shall immediately stop the vehicle at the scene of the accident.” If a person violates the law, they are subject to jail time and up to $10,000 in fines. If the hit and run accident results in death or serious injury, the violator is subject to prison time and large fines, and substantial restitution orders. Mark Deniz has handled these matters on an everyday basis.
Depending on the severity of a traffic incident, the accused person’s criminal record, and whether the traffic accident caused a person to be injured – a hit and run charge in San Diego can be filed as either a felony or misdemeanor. Minor hit and run accidents with minimal property damage and no physical injuries are typically charged as misdemeanor hit and run. If a hit and run accident results in bodily injury or death, a case will generally be filed as a hit and run felony.
Felony hit and run cases are typically punished more severely than misdemeanor violations. Jail time and fines vary in hit and run cases, taking into consideration the specific facts of each case.
You should never represent yourself in any misdemeanor or felony hit and run investigation. Your first step is to seek immediate representation from a San Diego hit and run attorney.
If you or someone you love is facing hit and run charges, contact San Diego Hit and Run Attorney Mark Deniz, at 858-751-4384, for a free case evaluation.
Here is more on the elements of the charge.
Any time a person is involved in an automobile accident that results in property damage, he or she is required to immediately stop and exchange information or leave information in a place where it will be discovered. Failure to perform this legal duty following an accident involving property damage, commonly known as misdemeanor hit and run, is a criminal offense under California Vehicle Code Section 20002 VC.
To prove that a defendant is guilty of this offense, a prosecutor must prove that:
- While driving a vehicle, the defendant was involved in an accident
- The accident caused damage to someone else’s property
- The defendant knew that he or she had been involved in the accident that caused property damage, or knew from the nature of the accident that property was likely damaged
- AND the defendant willfully failed to perform one or more of the following:
- Stopping immediately at the accident scene
- Immediately providing the owner or person in control of the damaged property with the name and current address of the driver or vehicle owner, if the vehicle is owned by someone else
The driver of a vehicle may provide the required information in one of two ways:
- The driver may locate the owner or person in control of the damaged property and give that person the information directly. On request, the driver must also show that person his or her driver’s license and the vehicle registration
- OR The driver may leave the required information in a written note in a conspicuous place on the vehicle or other damaged property. The driver must then also, without unnecessary delay, notify the proper authorities about the accident.
The driver of a vehicle must perform these duties regardless of how or why the accident occurred. It does not matter if someone else was responsible for the accident or if the accident was unavoidable.
