Felony Hit and Run (what is a proper sentence)

[BUGSY00]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California.

My daughter was severly injured in a felony hit and run accident last year (she was hit and dragged underneath a 2002 VW Jetta for over 60 feet and lost a significant amount of tissue and sustained major injuries). The driver was caught 2 weeks later, she admitted to drinking (having several triple shots) that night but claimed she could not remember hitting my daughter. She did admit to being behind the wheel of the car that night, and could remember driving into her driveway but not the actual accident. She has no prior felonies, is 27 years of age and female. She does have a previous DUI 2 years ago and is in violation of her probation.

Today the D.A. indicated they were seeking either 16 months in prison or 1 year county with 3 years probation. The judge decided to put it off until December 3rd to determine either a motion for the defendent to plead or set a prelim for a trial date.

I felt the driver should do at least 2-3 years in prison for this crime. My question is what is the normal sentencing guidelines for a person who is convicted of Felony Hit and Run with no priors that has caused major bodily injury. I cannot find information on the internet.

My daughter is still under medical care, 3 days a week. I'm not concerned about the civil aspect, just the criminal. What can I do to persuade the judge to consider my request if I feel the district attorney is not handling the case properly.

This happened in Contra Costa County, Pittsburg California.

[racer72]

What can I do to persuade the judge to consider my request if I feel the district attorney is not handling the case properly.

Nothing, it's not your call.

[JIMinCA]

BS!!!! You don't necessarily have a legal approach, but a pissed of father of an injured girl can certainly bring to bear a lot of pressure on the DAs office. If you aren't getting the results you want... get the press involved. Become an activist.

[CdwJava]

Originally Posted by BUGSY00

Today the D.A. indicated they were seeking either 16 months in prison or 1 year county with 3 years probation. The judge decided to put it off until December 3rd to determine either a motion for the defendent to plead or set a prelim for a trial date.

I felt the driver should do at least 2-3 years in prison for this crime. My question is what is the normal sentencing guidelines for a person who is convicted of Felony Hit and Run with no priors that has caused major bodily injury. I cannot find information on the internet.

The standard penalty for CVC 20001 (felony hit and run) is 16 months to three years in state prison and up to $10,000 in fines. If the injury is a "permanent, serious" one, then the time can be up to four years. In my experience, any prison time at all is outside the norm for a hit-and-run with serious injury. The one year of county and three years of probation is not uncommon.

You can certainly lobby the DA to hold out for a stiffer sentence, and as Jim suggests you can scream to the media. How much impact either will have is debatable in a county the size of Contra Costa County.

The DA's office takes a number of things in to consideration when offering a deal. These things include the strength of the case against the defendant, the cost of prosecution, the likelihood of a serious sentence, just to name a few. It could well be that the local courts - or perhaps the judge assigned the case - rarely offer up prison time if the matter goes the distance. In that case, a deal might be the better way to go.

Contact the DA's office and see if the DA handling the case will be willing to speak to you and explain his reasoning.

- Carl

[garrula lingua]

That can be a very hard case to prosecute.
If you force the DA to go to trial, she may walk away, free.

The DA will have to prove that she was aware of having 'hit' before she 'ran'.
Sounds easy, but it can be very hard without witnesses inside the offender's car, or an act by the offender (getting out of the car and looking at the injured/car damage).

If the defendant just kept driving, she may have been unaware of an impact, in which case she may be acquitted at trial.

One year in county (and she'll get 50% credit, so she'll do six months) is the norm for this.

Be sure to ask for reimbursement through the criminal court - it can be a term of probation and the criminal court can issue a judgment when probation is about to expire. It shouldn't be dischargable in backruptcy, so you should get some monies paid.

I'm sorry this terrible thing happened to your family.
There is no way of exacting the 'correct' amount of justice.
The truth is, it's better to get a conviction on the offender's record, and some jail time.
The fact that the defendant may have been drunk is probably not provable now (no blood test, etc. That 'evidence' as to intoxication may be excluded at trial).

If you push the Prosecutor, they will probably take it to trial.
Many of these cases are acquittals.
The offender may just walk away.

If this were a strong case, the Prosecutor would be pushing for trial, not a plea.

[CdwJava]

Garrula brings up an excellent point.

We had one here not long ago where it was much the same situation. We KNEW who the driver was, and we even had the car. But, due to the circumstances, and no good ID of the driver at the time of the impact, we had the very real potential of reasonable doubt at trial ... likely ID of the car, two possible drivers - neither one admitting to driving - physical evidence with an alternative explanation (weak, but possible), and eyewitnesses that could not see the driver. The victim and his family were angry that the DA offered a plea, but the case was not all that strong. Yes, we were confident we had the right person (the husband) but when you throw in the other factors, a good defense attorney might convince one person on the jury that they weren't guilty.

Better to take the conviction you can get. But, give a call to the DA's office and see if the prosecutor will talk to you. The worst thing that will happen will be that go with the deal, so you have little to lose.

- Carl

[racer72]

Originally Posted by JIMinCA

BS!!!! You don't necessarily have a legal approach, but a pissed of father of an injured girl can certainly bring to bear a lot of pressure on the DAs office. If you aren't getting the results you want... get the press involved. Become an activist.

This is the exact reason states now have sentencing guidelines and judges are given very little leeway when it comes to sentencing. Sentences should be based on the facts and emotions have no place when it comes to determining what is fair. If the DA's office and the courts start letting "pissed off fathers" determine how our legal system is run, it is no longer a fair legal system. The vigilante system of justice went out of style a long time ago. One day any of us could end up in the same position as the defendant in the OP's post, who do you want determining your sentence, a fair and impartial justice system or a family member or two that wants their own brand of justice?

[CdwJava]

Today there was a case in Butte County where a DUI driver had plead no contest to involuntary manslaughter and given probation and only two remaining months in custody (after time served). The reasons cited by the trial court was that the driver was getting help for his problem and had no priors. It should be noted that the DA did not seek this result, but there it is ... I bet the victim's family would have preferred a plea deal here that guaranteed a short prison stint.

[url=http://www.chicoer.com/news/ci_10731922]Drunken driver placed on probation for fatal crash - Chico Enterprise Record[/url]


- Carl

[JIMinCA]

Carl and Garulla make excellent points. Reality sucks sometimes. However, I am just infuriated by the process sometimes. I'm sure your daughter didn't get to "negotiate" the extent of her injuries.

I know you probably see the civil route as being oppotunistic and based upon your daughter's suffering. However, it is a way to bridge the gap between a light conviction and justice. If you feel like any monies recovered would be "blood money" or such, then donate all of the proceeds to the hospital that cared for your daughter or some other charity. Your intent does not have to be financial gain, rather it could simply be a continuation of the punishment.