damn, got charged with hit and run,...

Well, here it goes.

Was driving home from work, gave the signal to change lanes, wanted to get in my right lane. Checked the blindspot, nothing, while changing hit another car, don't know whether she sped up or what, We stopped, it was rush hour, asked her if she was okay, checked the cars, I asked her to meet me in the mall a mile down the road. She agreed, I hurried to the mall she was behind me. At the mall, no sign of her. I waited, n, waited.... This was a new car so I hurried back home to print my insurance forms, and boom! cops @ my place to charge me with a hit and run. I explained to them the whole story and told them that I stopped twice, but, they didn't listen. She had called the cops n reported me, damn.
If I was to run, would I stop twice??

That sucks.

I'm not calling you out, but if I were a cop and heard that story I'd probably cite you for hit and run too.

It doesn't make sense to me, why wouldn't you exchange information right there if you had already pulled over and stopped. Just doesn't make sense.

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1. If the first time you pulled over there was limited space to a lot of traffic, this makes perfect sense.

2. Hire a lawyer...nave them talk to the prosecutor, see if in exchange for taking financial resp and bring up standing, they'll drop the hot and run, bdont rely on cops and judge to doth right thing

+1. Tell the judge you didn't feel safe exchanging information where you were at. I'm no lawyer, but it seems falling back on safety always helps...

maybe she went to a different mall... or mall car-park... or car-park entrance... but I think you can get this beat... it might take a lawyer though.... I would talk to the insurance company first - they have lawyers! My guess and it is just a guess - is that she is pretty ditzy and misunderstood where to meet back up with her - when you and she turned up at different places, she assumed you were doing a runner.... learn a lesson... for future reference - never leave the scene without snapping a cell-phone pic and getting their name/address/phone even to move out of traffic more than a couple of hundred yards.

Originally Posted by E36 Phantom

I'm not calling you out, but if I were a cop and heard that story I'd probably cite you for hit and run too.

It doesn't make sense to me, why wouldn't you exchange information right there if you had already pulled over and stopped. Just doesn't make sense.

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..I hear ya.

Originally Posted by ard

1. If the first time you pulled over there was limited space to a lot of traffic, this makes perfect sense.

2. Hire a lawyer...nave them talk to the prosecutor, see if in exchange for taking financial resp and bring up standing, they'll drop the hot and run, bdont rely on cops and judge to doth right thing

Exactly, and it was a double wammy as the cop ended up giving me 2 tickets, one for hit and run and one for illegal lane change.
Do insurance companies look @ this as an excuse to raise rates?

Originally Posted by wyb

maybe she went to a different mall... or mall car-park... or car-park entrance... but I think you can get this beat... it might take a lawyer though.... I would talk to the insurance company first - they have lawyers! My guess and it is just a guess - is that she is pretty ditzy and misunderstood where to meet back up with her - when you and she turned up at different places, she assumed you were doing a runner.... learn a lesson... for future reference - never leave the scene without snapping a cell-phone pic and getting their name/address/phone even to move out of traffic more than a couple of hundred yards.

I agree, lesson learn't for nextime. ...(bigtime)

You need to fight this one with a lawyer. You don't want to have to the the sr22 insurance. It will stick to your record for years and fighting it now will save you thousands in high insurance premiums.

Or.. maybe not. If you go to traffic court for the charge and she is not there, all you have to do is plea not guilty. Since she is the only witness to whether or not you really left the scene, she is the only one who can substantiate the offense. The police (if they go to court that day) can only say what they were told. They're not actual witnesses.

This worked for me when I was ticketed for 'following too close'- the result of an accident when I hit someone in the back. I went to court, the person I hit wasn't there when the judge asked for witnesses to stand up, so I pled not guilty. No explanation. No charges. No court costs. Nothing.

Of course, my insurance still paid for the accident and all of that, but the matter of my business with the City was closed.

Originally Posted by Sportsdad

You need to fight this one with a lawyer. You don't want to have to the the sr22 insurance. It will stick to your record for years and fighting it now will save you thousands in high insurance premiums.

+1. Regardless of how it is resolved, a lawyer is needed to say it in the right way. Its sort of a scam but that's the way the system is. Most judges don't take people without lawyers seriously. I've heard them tell people to go get a lawyer and come back when its a serious issue.

Originally Posted by Kaari

....She agreed, I hurried to the mall she was behind me. At the mall, no sign of her.......

I think this is going to be your biggest obstacle. The argument would be why, if she was behind you, were you in such a hurry to get to the mall, so much of a hurry that you clearly lost her in traffic.

I bet she never even went to a mall....when she saw you take off in traffic, she felt you were "running", she calls the cops......hit & run.

Lawyer can likely get this worked out....good luck

Originally Posted by LegendaryItalia

I think this is going to be your biggest obstacle. The argument would be why, if she was behind you, were you in such a hurry to get to the mall, so much of a hurry that you clearly lost her in traffic.

I bet she never even went to a mall....when she saw you take off in traffic, she felt you were "running", she calls the cops......hit & run.

Lawyer can likely get this worked out....good luck

Here I would point out that she did show up @ the mall but didn't follow me to the parking lot, instead, she stood a ways away. She testified to the cop that he did show up but left What she didn't say that I was there for a while and that she should have just pulled up behind me, you know what I mean? So she's admitting that I did stop twice, but, alas....

Originally Posted by cwsqbm

+1. Regardless of how it is resolved, a lawyer is needed to say it in the right way. Its sort of a scam but that's the way the system is. Most judges don't take people without lawyers seriously. I've heard them tell people to go get a lawyer and come back when its a serious issue.

I read up on the hit and run charge and it stated 2500 dollar's fine OR a year in prison if convicted for a person with a clean record?

Originally Posted by PropellerHead

Or.. maybe not. If you go to traffic court for the charge and she is not there, all you have to do is plea not guilty. Since she is the only witness to whether or not you really left the scene, she is the only one who can substantiate the offense. The police (if they go to court that day) can only say what they were told. They're not actual witnesses.

This worked for me when I was ticketed for 'following too close'- the result of an accident when I hit someone in the back. I went to court, the person I hit wasn't there when the judge asked for witnesses to stand up, so I pled not guilty. No explanation. No charges. No court costs. Nothing.

Of course, my insurance still paid for the accident and all of that, but the matter of my business with the City was closed.

What would lawyers normally charge 4 this kind for a case?

Sounds like she is guilty of the hit and run, but since she called the cops first...
I wonder if its too late for you to accuse her of a hit and run too.

Originally Posted by elistan

Sounds like she is guilty of the hit and run, but since she called the cops first...
I wonder if its too late for you to accuse her of a hit and run too.

I just had a few scratches on my car; I don't know what story she told my insurance and ended up with a check north of $2K.

Originally Posted by Kaari

What would lawyers normally charge 4 this kind for a case?

That's going to vary from community to community. I didn't have a lawyer. Didn't need one. Just showed up, waited for my name to called. They asked for any witnesses to stand up and no one else did. So, right from where I was standing, the judge asked me the plea, I said 'Not Guilty' and he asked the crowd if any other witness had anything to say. No one said anything, so he said, 'Case dismissed. You're free to go.'

And I left.

Originally Posted by Kaari

Here I would point out that she did show up @ the mall but didn't follow me to the parking lot, instead, she stood a ways away. She testified to the cop that he did show up but left What she didn't say that I was there for a while and that she should have just pulled up behind me, you know what I mean?

Ummmm......im kinda lost, could you clarify a bit.

In your first post you said: "At the mall, no sign of her. I waited, n, waited...."

But then you followed in this post saying she did show up at the mall but "she stood a ways away"

So did you actually see her at the mall? If you did, why didn't you go to her instead of leaving to go home for papers?

What am I missing?

Originally Posted by elistan

Sounds like she is guilty of the hit and run, but since she called the cops first...
I wonder if its too late for you to accuse her of a hit and run too.

Up here, i think the they have something called "leaving the scene of an accident" and it sounds like they both are somewhat guilty of that once they agreed to go to the mall.

http://www.legalmatch.com/law-librar...-accident.html

Why Do I Have To Remain At The Scene After An Accident?
In all U.S. states, it is a crime for someone involved in a car accident to flee the scene. This is also known as a “hit and run” accident. The purpose of these laws is to compel those involved to render any necessary assistance to those who might be injured, and to provide proper identification and insurance information, preventing them from escaping any criminal or civil liability which might arise from the accident.

What Should I Do If I Am Accused of Leaving The Scene of An Accident?
Leaving the scene of an accident before providing identification, insurance information and/or assistance to the injured can result in serious criminal charges. In addition, the injured can seek damages in a civil court. If you are accused of leaving the scene of an accident, you should contact a criminal defense attorney.

Are there Any Exceptions To Leaving the Scene of An Accident Charges?
There are a few exceptions, although they apply mostly to irregular situations.

The first set of exceptions is that this law only applies to drivers in accidents. Witnesses and passengers are free to leave the scene if they want to without fear of legal punishment.

Next, the law doesn’t apply if the driver is somehow incapacitated. An injury or disability which prevents the driver from rendering assistance or exchanging information would prevent the driver from being liable for inability to give assistance. Generally, the driver would also have to be injured for this exception to apply.

Finally, certain circumstances may prevent the driver from being able to discharge his duty. A driver who doesn’t know about injury or property damage is typically exempt from liability. If the driver believes that his or her life would be in danger by remaining at the accident, such as in the event of a fire or toxic spill, the court may also grant an exemption.

Playing Matlock here, if both told police they agreed to exchange info at another location they may get off the "leaving the scene" because it wasn't safe to exchange the info at the scene (busy traffic, danger of getting hit). If Kaari then told police he saw the woman at the mall, but she didn't approach him he can at least prove he showed up. However, it begs the question why didn't he go talk to her. It certainly looks to police like he was evading her and thus was intending to "leave the scene" and not exchange info when he left the original scene of the accident.

Also, conflicting stories like "no sign of her" and "she was there but a ways away and then she left" start bells ringing for police.

Originally Posted by LegendaryItalia

Ummmm......im kinda lost, could you clarify a bit.

In your first post you said: "At the mall, no sign of her. I waited, n, waited...."

But then you followed in this post saying she did show up at the mall but "she stood a ways away"

So did you actually see her at the mall? If you did, why didn't you go to her instead of leaving to go home for papers?

What am I missing?

You make a good a point, no, I didn't see her. Because she was behind me, she probably did where I was. But she didn't follow me to the parking spot where I was, it's a huge place, she was else where.

Originally Posted by gjwilson

Also, conflicting stories like "no sign of her" and "she was there but a ways away and then she left" start bells ringing for police.

When I was escorted back to the place where she was at the mall, I found out her exact location. as I stated earlier that it was a very busy time. I didn't see her from my first location. But later when I found out exactly where she was and got to see the vantage point from where I was. I know I didn't include a ton of details in my orignal post.

Originally Posted by Kaari

When I was escorted back to the place where she was at the mall, I found out her exact location. as I stated earlier that it was a very busy time. I didn't see her from my first location. But later when I found out exactly where she was and got to see the vantage point from where I was. I know I didn't include a ton of details in my orignal post.

If it's a "large place" and you were able to tell police where you were before they showed you were she was and it is plausible that you couldn't have seen her or her you then you have at least half a leg to stand on.

That the police were at your house when you showed up helps you and hurts you. It shows you didn't immediately run home. They had time to field her call and get to your house. So it is still plausible that you showed up at the agreed location to exchange info.

However, it can hurt you since you left THAT scene. She may have called police from where ever she was in the mall and said "had an accident, we agreed to meet at the mall to exchange (for safety reasons), can't find him". This is what you should have done.

In that case, it isn't just her word against yours. She was definitely at the mall and reported to police. She would be in the clear. And you left the area where you agreed to meet without reporting the accident (and this is probably why you were charged and not her)

This sure sounds like a situation where you need a lawyer with some experience in the area who can work to get charges dropped if police are convinced you did show up. he can present it as "You know the guy showed up to exchange and when they couldn't met up he went home to report the whole mess and find out what to do"

Good luck...

Originally Posted by gjwilson

If it's a "large place" and you were able to tell police where you were before they showed you were she was and it is plausible that you couldn't have seen her or her you then you have at least half a leg to stand on.

That the police were at your house when you showed up helps you and hurts you. It shows you didn't immediately run home. They had time to field her call and get to your house. So it is still plausible that you showed up at the agreed location to exchange info.

However, it can hurt you since you left THAT scene. She may have called police from where ever she was in the mall and said "had an accident, we agreed to meet at the mall to exchange (for safety reasons), can't find him". This is what you should have done.

In that case, it isn't just her word against yours. She was definitely at the mall and reported to police. She would be in the clear. And you left the area where you agreed to meet without reporting the accident (and this is probably why you were charged and not her)

This sure sounds like a situation where you need a lawyer with some experience in the area who can work to get charges dropped if police are convinced you did show up. he can present it as "You know the guy showed up to exchange and when they couldn't met up he went home to report the whole mess and find out what to do"

Good luck...

Very good analysis, agreed, 100%