I Hit Someone By Accident with My Car and Left the Scene. What Do I Do?
Many of the best Connecticut criminal lawyers and attorneys get calls all the time from drivers who accidentally hit another car and then leave the scene. They want to know what to do next.
The answer is easy. Call a top Connecticut criminal lawyer and have them reach out to the local police department on your behalf to report the accident and try to keep the case from escalating into a criminal investigation. If you and your lawyer act quickly, these cases don’t always have to go criminal. If you wait too long, Connecticut police will have no choice to treat the accident as an Evading Responsibility / Hit-and-Run crime under CGS 14-224.
Can a One-Car Accident Just Involving My Car Be Considered Evading Responsibility?
Yes. It may not make much sense, but you can get arrested in Stamford, Greenwich or anywhere in Connecticut for not reporting a one-car accident—involving your car only—to the Connecticut police.
Connecticut Evading Responsibility / Hit-and-Run laws are crystal clear: if you cause property damage as a result of a motor vehicle accident, then you must report the accident to the police. No exceptions.
What If It’s Not Safe to Pull Over and Report a Car Accident?
As the top Connecticut criminal defense lawyers know, Connecticut Evading Responsibility / Hit-and-Run laws appreciate that it’s not always safe to pull over on a dark, busy interstate highway or road. Or on a street in a sketchy neighborhood. That’s why the law allows you to call in the accident a little bit later—or as soon as you can safely pull over and report the details of the accident to the local authorities.
Most Evading Responsibility Investigations Turn Into DWI / OUI Investigations
The reason why there are so many arrests in Connecticut for Evading Responsibility / Hit and Run under CGS 14-224 is because police and prosecutors believe that people leave the scene of car accidents because they don’t want to get hit with a DUI / OUI, marijuana DUI, prescription drug DUI, or driving with a suspended license. Why else would you leave the scene?
So when the police come to your door after you leave the scene of the accident, and you’ve been drinking or were on drugs, make sure you do NOT talk to the police and first talk to a Connecticut hit and run criminal lawyer. They will advise you on how to handle the police investigation for Evading Responsibility.
Follow this link for more on how to handle a Connecticut Evading Responsibility arrest.
Contact a Connecticut Hit and Run / Evading Responsibility Lawyer Attorney Today
Evading Responsibility charges can create a headache for you in court, as well as reputationally, as the charges will be published online and in Google searches of your name. The team of Connecticut Evading Responsibility lawyers at Mark Sherman Law will be able to first help you squash any chances of a criminal arrest, if possible. And if you have been arrested, we can work to get the case dismissed, expunged, and off the internet. You can click here to read certified Avvo.com reviews from our former Evading / Hit and Run clients. Then give us a call to discuss your case at (203) 358-4700.