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Vehicles are enormous machines that travel at high speeds. As such, the legislature has seen fit to enact and prosecutors have seen fit to enforce laws in Arizona that dole out stiff penalties for harm that is done behind the wheel of a car, truck or SUV. The number of laws and the penalties attached to them continue to expand, and anyone who faces a charge involving a vehicular crime needs the help of an Phoenix criminal defense lawyer immediately.
Below you’ll find information regarding the different types of vehicular crimes that exist in Arizona, the penalties that are attached to them and finally how you should proceed if you or someone you love faces the prospect of being investigated, arrested or prosecuted for a vehicular crime in Arizona.
There are several statutes in existence in Arizona that deal specifically with vehicular crimes, and below is a brief description of each along with the penalties a defendant could face if he or she is convicted.
In Arizona, a person involved in an auto accident is required to stop and render reasonable aid to anyone who may be injured. Even if no one is injured, a person cannot leave the scene of an accident without facing criminal penalties. Depending on the specifics of the situation, a person who leaves the scene of an accident can face a misdemeanor if no one is seriously injured up to a Class 2 felony if someone is killed. A Class 2 felony conviction could entail up to 12.5 years in prison. This crime is commonly called a hit-and-run.
Endangerment is a relatively new crime in Arizona in a vehicular sense, and it’s often charged in conjunction with a DUI that results in an accident. Basically, the statute states that someone has committed endangerment if he or she recklessly endangered another person with a substantial risk of imminent death or personal injury. A conviction of this charge could lead to up to three years in prison.
Aggravated assault can be charged for a defendant who recklessly endangers the life of someone else. The mental state required for a conviction is recklessness and not mere negligence, which means that the person either did or should have known of the extreme risks involved but basically committed the act anyway. A conviction for this crime can be enhanced to the point where a defendant faces between five and 15 years in prison.
The key word to remember with this crime is the word ‘negligent’ because of its relation to the mental state required for a conviction. Basically, a defendant does not have to intend to kill someone, but instead it must be shown that he or she did not act reasonably and did not see the extreme risks involved with a situation. Negligent homicide often results from a DUI-related accident in which someone is killed, and a conviction can lead to almost four years in prison.
This charge is often referred to as vehicular manslaughter, and the mental state required for a conviction of this charge is recklessness. Recklessness is more severe in a criminal sense than negligence, and it means that a driver should have known of the extreme risks his or her conduct was creating but continued on to commit an act that led to the death of another person. This is another statute that is often invoked when someone causes a fatality while driving under the influence of an intoxicant, and a conviction can carry up to 12.5 years in prison.
If someone engages in intentional conduct with a vehicle that results in another’s death, that person could be charged with second degree murder. In addition, if the defendant acted with such extreme recklessness that he or she should have known that his or her conduct could lead to a fatality, second degree murder could still wind up being the charge. Second degree murder convictions can result in more than 20 years in prison.
Even though the laws in Arizona continue to provide for stiffer penalties, the United States Constitution still guarantees several rights to any and every defendant. There are many rights to keep in mind, and failing to invoke any of them could lead to substantial harm to a defense against these charges.
Therefore, rather than attempting to handle this situation yourself at the risk of losing your freedom, you owe it to yourself to waste no time in contacting an Arizona criminal defense lawyer who understands your rights, the strategies involved with these situations and how to work with prosecutors in order to bring this situation to a conclusion. Contact the Phoenix criminal defense lawyers at David Wroblewski & Associates today to schedule an initial consultation.
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