Charges: Leaving the Scene of an Accident (x2); Reckless Conduct; Driving to Endanger
Maximum Penalty: If convicted on all crimes, the client faced up to 30 months in prison; a 13 month loss of license and fines in the amount of $5,000.00
Summary: Client was driving down a street when she came upon an emergency scene. Client attempted to drive by an emergency vehicle and accidentally scraped said vehicle with his/her car. The emergency worker allegedly told the client that he/she had struck the emergency vehicle and to stop. Client couldn’t hear the emergency worker and didn’t realize he/she struck the vehicle. Client backed up in an attempt to leave and struck another car. Client drove away without leaving any of his/her information. Police made contact with my client a few days later and my client denied any wrong doing.
Result: This case boiled down to one simple but difficulty to obtain goal and that was to minimize the damage and avoid any criminal convictions for Reckless Conduct and Driving to Endanger. During a lengthy negotiation with the DA, we shared photos of the client’s vehicle and the “victim’s” vehicle to demonstrate that the damage alleged couldn’t have been caused by my client’s car. Ultimately, I was able to convince the DA to dismiss all of the charges in return for a plea of no contest to a single count of leaving the scene of an accident. This ensured my client wouldn’t be liable for any damages to the vehicles based on a guilty plea (which we avoided). Client was fined $250.00.
