Connecticut Hit and Run Arrest Process
An evading responsibility charge is often prosecuted seriously in Connecticut court. This type of charge arises when a person is in an auto accident with another vehicle, or drives onto an individual’s personal property and causes damage but doesn’t stop or leave their information. An individual who is charged with such a crime can expect to be involved in a lengthy legal process that may result in burdensome penalties. To reduce or dismiss such charges, it is pertinent that any individual contact an experienced evading responsibility attorney immediately. Only a knowledgeable hit and run lawyer will be able to help effectively defend any charge you may be up against.
Process of an Arrest
For an evading responsibility arrest, the police usually receive a call from someone who says their car was damaged while parked in a garage, or that they were driving and someone hit them. This happens when an individual has their car or other property damaged and the other driver drives away. This is normally how an evading responsibility arrest starts.
The officer will come and assess the scene and look at the damage on the car. If the driver has the other driver’s plate number, the police will run the plate and usually go to their home. If not, law enforcement might have to look at video surveillance or canvass the area for witnesses to try and track down the offending car.
The police will end up getting in touch with the other driver through one of those ways and begin to question them. Law enforcement may even look at the accused individual’s car to see if it has damage that matches the complaining person’s car.
There are some situations where a person’s rights are not read to them by the officer during an arrest process and that person makes an incriminating statement. An experienced lawyer determines if there is any opportunity to suppress those statements.
The final step is to issue the person a misdemeanor summons for evading responsibility or bring them to the Greenwich Police Department and book them, take a mug shot, and take their fingerprints before they are released or post a bond.
Arrest on the Scene
If the officers observe a person attempting to leave the scene, they would most likely pull over the person immediately. There are instances where they can dispatch another officer who will pull the individual over right away, take their license registration, and question them about any potential accident they were involved in.
After an Arrest
After the arrest is made, the person charged gets a court date in Stamford Superior Court. This is usually within two weeks after the day of the incident. Before that time, the person charged should get in touch with an attorney to start preparing to defend the case in court.
Sometimes, a person is brought to the police station for a police booking. However, this depends on the situation. Often, when the police officers go to the person’s home, they might just end up giving them a summons that tells them when and where to report for court. However, when a car is totaled and a person is taken into police custody, they might be booked at a police station.
Elements to Prove
The most important thing to know about the evading responsibility arrest process is that people need to give the officers confidence that they did not operate the vehicle under the influence, ensure that they are validly licensed and insured, and theat they did not break any other motor vehicle laws. Once law enforcement or the court is comfortable with those things, it makes the case a bit simpler to resolve favorably.
Court Process
If someone is not brought to the police station, they are usually free to be at home or at work and continue with life as normal. The only requirement they have is that they need to appear in court on that first court date. That court date is usually within two weeks. The typical time is about 10 to 14 days.
A court appearance is mandatory in an evading responsibility case. Regardless of which type of evading responsibility the person is charged with, they must appear in court. Usually, the only condition police put on the person, especially if they are not booked is to appear in court on the court date. If a person fails to appear in court, an individual could face penalties.
Benefits of an Attorney
After an evading responsibility arrest in Greenwich, the most important thing is to quickly get in touch with a lawyer. This is because there might be some evidence the lawyer can preserve. For example, if there is video surveillance of a parking a lot and that is where the accident allegedly happened, sometimes that video surveillance can be overwritten. These videos often record on a cycle, so it is going to be available only for a week or so. If that is something that is important to the case, it is important to get that sooner than when the case is in court. A knowledgeable attorney will be able to help an individual with this process.