Vehicular Manslaughter - When is a Road Accident Considered a Crime?What is vehicular manslaughter? It is the offence of taking a human life as a result of a violation of driving and traffic laws. This crime is not applicable only to the driver of the vehicle that caused the crime; i.e., it can be applied to passengers of the said vehicle as well.What is Manslaughter?Manslaughter
is different from other forms
of homicide since it does not involve the presence of intent or malice
aforethought in the act of killing another human being. Manslaughter is
less
culpable than murder by law since the state of mind of the offender at
the time
of the occurrence is distinguished. Manslaughter
may be voluntary or
involuntary. An offender may be guilty of voluntary manslaughter if
intent to
cause bodily harm or death may be existent. However, the charges
against the
offender can be mitigated due to the culpability of the act as well as
his
state of mind during the occurrence. An example of this is overwhelming
rage
felt by an individual upon seeing his child suspiciously approached by
the
victim. Vehicular
Manslaughter Defined
Vehicular
manslaughter is involuntary
manslaughter since the death of another human being is caused without
due
intent to cause bodily harm or kill. However, there are aggravating
factors
since illegal driving is the main reason which caused the death of the
victim.
Reckless driving, speeding, driving without a license, driving under
the
influence of a substance, and carelessness all fall under the category
of
illegal driving. When a person kills another due to one of these
circumstances,
he will be charged with either a misdemeanor or felony. For
example, a person was running 65 mph on
a 60 mph road then accidentally hits and kills another individual
passing by.
The charges can be lesser or mitigated by the circumstances that he was
speeding only a few miles over the limit. He may get away with
committing a
misdemeanor. If the offender happened to be a minor and was under the
influence
of alcohol at the time of the occurrence, he may be charged with
committing a
felony. Vehicular
Manslaughter and Murder
Murder
can be charged to offenders who
committed the act with extreme negligence such as drunk driving or
driving
under the influence of drugs. Vehicular manslaughter can be charged as
long as
the elements of a vehicle, the driver, the victim and the vehicular
accident
are present. Even if the victim happens to be one of the passengers of
the same
vehicle, the driver can still be charged with vehicular manslaughter.
If under
the influence, DUI will also be charged. As
long as the traffic rules and
regulations of the area were breached, vehicular manslaughter is the
most
likely case when an accident occurs. Vehicular manslaughter can also be
proven
intentional in some cases. The court may discover malice aforethought
that
distinguishes a different behavior in the offender and a unique
circumstantial
display in the part of the victim. These factors may be added up
producing the
apparent accident thereby increasing the charges to first degree murder
punishable by capital punishment. Sanctions
for the Crime
Penalties
for the offense can be in fines
and imprisonment. Offenders can be fined anywhere from $5,000 to
$1,000,000
depending on the damages on the persons, property and vehicles
involved.
Offenders can be imprisoned from six months to twenty years. Paroles
can be
given with special probations on driving and maneuvering other forms of
machinery. === |
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