It’s difficult to know what runs through the mind of someone who flees the scene of a crash. Perhaps it’s an extreme sense of self-preservation that allows someone to hit a person with their car and then leave them to die or suffer life-altering injuries. Perhaps that driver was drunk or otherwise negligent and fears the legal repercussions and social stigma that go hand-in-hand with an accident of this nature.
Regardless of the reasons, hit-and-run-accidents happen all the time and, from a moral and a legal sense, are just plain wrong. The only reason to ever leave the scene of an accident is if you are in a deserted or unsafe area and fear for your life. If that’s the case, head directly for a police station and report the accident. Barring that rare circumstance, leaving an accident — or even failing to leave insurance information — is never a good idea.
A Louisiana man has been arrested in connection with a hit-and-run accident that happened in July. The man allegedly hit a bicyclist and then left the scene. The bicyclist’s body wasn’t found until hours later. Police caught up with the suspect a couple of weeks later and arrested him. He is facing charges of felony hit-and-run, negligent homicide, limitations on passing bicycles and driving under suspension.
A tragic case like this really makes the point hit home; hit-and-run accidents are a real threat. If you are involved in an accident in which the negligent party flees the scene, you still may have rights. A Louisiana attorney can sit down with you and give you guidance.
Source: KATC, “Driver Arrested in Fatal Hit and Run,” Olivia Blanchard, July 21, 2014
