No Excuses: Potential Reasons For Hit and Run Behavior

When you are in an accident, it is reasonable to be disoriented, especially in the first few minutes after the collision occurs. You take those moments to gather yourself, make sure that you and your loved ones aren’t too significantly injured, and then you start the process of calling the police to make a report. In most circumstances, the driver of the other vehicle is doing the same.

But sometimes, by the time you gather yourself, the other driver is long gone. Hit and run accidents occur hundreds of times a year in America. There are a variety of reasons a driver might flee the scene of an accident, including:

• The driver is under the influence of drugs or alcohol and is hoping to sober up before the police catch them
• The driver is driving without a license or on a suspended license
• The driver was distracted at the time of the accident and knows the police will determine the cause of the distraction, be it by checking cellphone records or interviewing passengers
• The driver knows they were at fault and doesn’t wish to be held accountable

If you have been the victim of a hit and run, knowing precisely why the other driver fled is important. The police will hopefully find the other driver, but the police have limited time and funds to pursue determining just what caused the accident to occur. And without knowing why they fled, truly understanding the cause of the accident can remain elusive.

If you or someone you love has been injured or killed in a hit and run accident, it is extremely important you hold the guilty party accountable. Though the criminal justice system will likely impose some punishment, this is often not enough to deter the same person from committing the same crime in the future. Consult an experienced attorney to help you understand other ways you can minimize the chance of the same driver ever hurting another person.