the charge is vehicular homicide. my dad was driving, and his sister in-law passed away, now the state of Ohio is charging him Vehicular Homicide. We got the county prosecutor as our lawyer to represent us.
2007-07-13 16:15:28 · 10 answers · asked by $MO$ 2 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
their were no alcohol involved with any driver
2007-07-13 17:08:43 · update #1
his sister in law was in the car. her family does not want to press charges.
2007-07-13 17:29:12 · update #2
That's a serious offense. Basically, somebody lost their life as a result of someone else's malice or negligence. Anytime that happens someone has to be held accountable for it.
I was charged for selling alcohol to a minor when I worked at a gas station. I got busted on one of those county wide sting operations. I simply screwed up and checked the ID for the tobacco age instead of the alcohol age. I just made a case that there was no criminal intent and if they wanted to try me for it then I wanted a jury trial (they always try and get you to waive your jury trial for a bench trial when it's a mistdemeanor). I guess they decided it wasn't worth the effort. They dropped the case.
2007-07-13 16:29:50 · answer #1 · answered by Chad 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If the vehicular homicide was the result of DUI, he can forget the charges being dropped.
But, if (1) the victim was a passenger in his car (2) the victim's family is willing to forgive him and is not pushing for prosecution (3) the death was caused by an honest driving error, or a "minor" violation of traffic laws that almost everyone has guilty of at some point, (4) and your father has no prior criminal record and a decent driving history, then it is possible. In fact, the odds of a dismissal are better than they would be in other types of criminal cases.
I reccommend that your dad take a defensive driving course and make sure his lawyer gets a copy of the certificate to the prosecution. I am far more likely to dismiss a case, even if a crime has occured, if the defendant is remorseful and is taking steps to prevent a tragedy from happening again.
2007-07-13 16:30:09 · answer #2 · answered by Ga Prosecutor 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
that doesnt make sense that your dad would be charged with vehicular homicide if someone simply passed away in the car....
could you add more details? was there an accident and the passenger died? (because that would make sense) or drunk driving or something else along those lines?
if its the later im doubtful they'll drop the charges. the state can still press charges against your dad even if other family memebers decided not to take your dad to court for like wrongful death or some crap, thats probably why your dad's charged as such. It's rare that the state would simply drop the charges just because..... but, its hard to determine (or give an opinion) without the full details.
2007-07-13 16:32:10 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
A prosecutor cant represent your father if he's still a prosecutor. Without some specific facts, it is impossible to determine if their is a chance the case will be dropped. If your father doesnt have a record, there is a good chance they will let him plead to a lesser offense. However, if there was alcohol, drugs or excessive speeding involved, they may proceed to trial if your father doesnt plead out.
Not a good situation from what you are saying, and it's possible that he will get some jail time. But again, that may or may not happen depending upon the facts of the case.
EDIT: If no alcohol was involved, there could have been drugs, wreckless endangerment, speeding...did he cross the centerline? Did he get on the highway going the wrong way? Was he speeding excessively? Again, if you want any kind of answer, you need to give more details. Not that it will change anything. But if you are looking for some guidance, you need to tell us more.
2007-07-13 16:23:06 · answer #4 · answered by Toodeemo 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It depends if he was DUI. Mostly someone gets charged with Vehicular Homicide, if they drove under the influence or reckless driving. I don't believe any District Attorney would drop a case like this. A person was killed and it is only just to hold the driver accountable.
2007-07-13 16:22:31 · answer #5 · answered by flieder77 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why do you have a prosecutor as your defence lawyer? If you dad was charged he may have been negligent, even if he was cold sober he will be responsible under some circumstances. A jury will see the facts as they are presented, if your dad was driving in a responsible way he should have nothing to worry about.
2007-07-21 14:34:14 · answer #6 · answered by johnandeileen2000 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Charges are rarely dropped, unless the prosecution loses all of its witnesses.
2007-07-13 16:19:40 · answer #7 · answered by coragryph 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If u got a good lawyer to represent u all i guess u good if he wasn't drunk or on an abusive drug.
2007-07-21 07:47:29 · answer #8 · answered by tanyjah 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Can't give you a yes or a no because there are so many other factors involved that you haven't mentioned.
2007-07-13 16:25:33 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
I assume that your father was drunk at the time. If your last name is Kennedy, he may beat the rap.
2007-07-13 16:23:56 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋