Fleeing an Accident Scene for Safety Reasons
California hit & run law requires a person involved in an accident to stop and provide identifying information to the other parties. Failure to do so may invite a felony charge under Vehicle Code 20001 if the accident caused injuries, or a misdemeanor charge under Vehicle Code 20002 if there was only property damage.
An increasingly common issue involves people who fail to stop because of safety concerns. For example, the driver may strike a pedestrian and then see an angry mob form. Or the driver may get in a fender-bender, but see that the other party is irate and potentially violent. Is it okay to flee the scene of the accident in these cases?
Technically, California hit & run law offers no exception for this situation. But practically speaking, prosecutors have discretion as to which cases they file. Typically they will look to see if the fleeing driver made some alternative way of reporting the accident. For example, suppose the driver immediately calls the police to report the accident and ask that an officer meet her at the scene. She then returns to the scene once police arrive. In a case like this, prosecutors are unlikely to file criminal hit & run charges.
