A friend of mine hit and killed someone

[nathanVY]

Hey everyone just wanted to get your opinions on this, recently a friend of mine who shall not be named was driving home, he wasn't speeding, he wasn't drunk, just driving. I don't know the details but he ended up hitting an older man attempting to cross the road, the man died on the scene.

What happens to him now? Criminal charges? Jail time?

By the way he hung around like a man and waited til the cops and ambos arrived. This truly was an accident and its a terrible thing but will he have to pay for it for the rest of his life when he was doing the right thing?

[Big_Simmo]

More than Likely be charged with dangerous driving causing death or maybe careless driving causing death.

As long as the cops do the investigation n find that he wasnt breaking any road rules like u stated above im guessing unless he has a prior criminal record for driving offences he will get a pretty huge fine and a loss of license for a few years.

If the cops work it out that the old man stepped out infront of him n there was nothing that ur mate could of done to change the outcome then he might not have any charges comin his way what so ever.

Dont forget jail time is usually used as a deterant to stop ppl from repeating an offence or for seriously screwed up things like rape,murder etc

[nathanVY]

Yeah thats what I was thinking ay, he's not a maniac driver quite good actually.
So if he gets the fine will he have a criminal record?

depends if/what he gets charged for I guess.

[Maxxiz]

He will get reamed, 95% likely. Was studying roadrules in law,
and theres a part somewhere that says something along the lines of "All drivers must travel at a speed in which they can stop or avoid any obstacle"

[CSP]

He will be deemed at fault as he was in control of the vehicle and needs to be able to avoid hitting anything (especially a person) at all times... Pedestrians ALWAYS have write of way.

[nathanVY]

Yeah, really makes you think. It could have been me too, because I was driving in that exact area dropping my girlfriend home only 15-20 minutes before it happened.
You've really gotta scan the road and constantly lookout for fools hey.

[CSP]

You have to be 100% alert 100% of the time. It's one of the reasons my phone gets switched off the second I start my car! Around town I don't often even have the stereo/radio on... Longer drives yeah, but not around town. Plus I like the noise of my car but means I'm concentrating on what's going on all around me.

And I get SO pissed off when I see people using the phones!

[minux]

This is why road laws are shit. Pedestrians should be at fault in these cases. What chances do you have when some idiot is walking around on roads during the night? You can be as careful as you want but some people you just cannot see until it is too late.

To the OP, I know of someone who had pretty much the same thing happen, he did no jail time as it was found there was nothing the driver could have done to prevent it. The idiot he killed was wearing black on an unlit street walking diagonally across a corner. The only one left suffering after all this was the driver...

I hope it all goes well for him.

[minux]

He will be deemed at fault as he was in control of the vehicle and needs to be able to avoid hitting anything (especially a person) at all times... Pedestrians ALWAYS have write of way.

Except at roundabouts, well in Victoria anyway. Pedestrian laws are stupid. It is easier for a pedestrian to stop and wait for a car than it is for a car to stop for a pedestrian.

[Philthy]

How close of a mate is he? Theres a good chance the punishment he puts himself through mentally will be many times worse than whatever the police might charge him with.
Be aware that he probably won't be sleeping, and might not want to talk (properly talk) about what is going on in his head. If he is a good mate make yourself available to sit down and chat with, otherwise talk with one of his closer mates and make sure they keep an eye on him.
If he has a tough time with it and doesn't seem to be coping, don't just tell him he needs to talk to someone. Find the number of a good councellor and actually give it to him. If he is short of cash offer to pay for it, or get a few mates to all put in for it.

[harry3]

obviously your friend needs to get an experienced lawyer now, not later

[nathanVY]

Thanks minux, I agree from what I know of what happened it was definitely dark and that street/intersection is pathetically lit, the dude was walking around at 12.30am on a saturday night - not a young guy either. It was in the paper yesterday but they said they hadn't identified the guy that died yet.

Philthy - appreciate the advice dude, we're not that close but I will be sure to make sure he's alright. He's got a lot of friends, his girlfriend and the church around him and everyones aware and ready to be there for him.

I was thinking he'd be needing a lawyer, does the family of the "victim" get involved in a case like this?

[Calaber]

Fatal road accidents are very thoroughly investigated and the assumption that the driver is at fault is not necessarily correct.

For example, if the pedestrian was not crossing at a set of lights or marked footcrossing, the time of day and prevailing weather, the clothing worn by the deceased, his blood alcohol and any drug level (which will be taken via blood sample, in NSW at least, by law), vehicle condition (in NSW, a full mechanical inspection is carried out for vehicles involved in fatal accidents - other states possibly have the same conditions). Independent witness statements are invaluable in determining the cause of the accident too. In other words, the driver isn't presumed to be at fault automatically.

To the OP, good luck to your mate. Even if he was completely unable to avoid the collision, he has this incident to live with for a long time.

[nathanVY]

Thanks Calaber, thats good to know. Yeah it would mess you up thats for sure, and I suppose this is kind of thing that Vic Police will jump up and down about and try to introduce more stupid laws maybe they'll make us do 400 hours to get our Ps now, who knows.

People die on the roads. fact. we can reduce it by reducing the amount of idiots, but we cannot stop it completely.

[HamaTime™]

This is why road laws are shit. Pedestrians should be at fault in these cases. What chances do you have when some idiot is walking around on roads during the night? You can be as careful as you want but some people you just cannot see until it is too late.

Exactly! On the road a pedestrian should not have right of way unless it is a Zebra Crossing....

[50LTRv8]

Exactly! On the road a pedestrian should not have right of way unless it is a Zebra Crossing....

I %100 agree with these statements. My mum hit a boy a few years back, except it was a bright sunny day, the thing was he ran out from behind a tree and straight onto the road, mum had barely anytime to even hit the brakes, my point being there are plenty of situations where the driver is NOT at fault. This doesn't make the driver feel any better though.

[Jesterarts]

I don't get where some of these rules people are quoting are coming from in regards to pedestrians, but they are not accurate.

VicRoad Rules:
Pedestrians : VicRoads

Pedestrians have right of way at crossings, giveway/stop signs, lights, etc.

A pedestrian does NOT have right of way if they are crossing a road there they should no be crossing the road.

So if the driver hit a pedestrian when they stepped out onto the road infront of the car and NOT at a location where a pedestrian has right of way, then the driver shouldn't be held accountable unless they where breaking the rules.

Also,

He will get reamed, 95% likely. Was studying roadrules in law,
and theres a part somewhere that says something along the lines of "All drivers must travel at a speed in which they can stop or avoid any obstacle"

I have not heard of this rule nor have I found any reference to this rule. We would all be required by law to drive around at 30kmph or less incase someone or something stepped out onto the road infront of us.

My opinion on this particular situation is that the driver should get off IF the pedestrian stepped out infront of the car randomly and not at a location where a driver is required to give way to a pedestrian. Obviously there will be a police investigation into this and then the final decision will be made on the ground of the findings so anything until then is speculation.

Worst case scenario would be charged with careless driving for whatever reason, license loss, etc but I can't imagine jail time.

If the incident occured at a pedestrian crossing or a location where driversa re required to give way to pedestrians, I would imagine the punishment would be more severe.

If possible, please keep us posted on any developments.

Regards,

J.

[Julie]

I can only tell you about my old mans experience and this was some 30+ years ago, he was travelling to work just before dawn on a main road when some derelict old man dressed in dark clothes walked out from a bush covered median strip. He did not see him until it was too late and he hit and killed the man. He was not speeding nor drink driving and he was charged I can't remember what he said the exact charge was. The police took away his vehicle, a panel van and did testing on it. He hads all his tools of trade in there and had to take them out and in hindsight he wished he didn't because the mass of them would have affected the braking times which they did test. It went to court and my father was cleared of all charges. I wasn't around then but it was a hugely stressful time and it was replayed out about 15 years ago when he was charged with culpible driving after a cyclist hit him whilst taking my brother to footy training. The forensic tests proved my father did not hit the cyclist the cyclist actually hit him and my dad was not accountable. But I remember him being so stressed at the time so I feel for your friend he will be going through a lot now. But just letting you know even if he is charged there is hope. Police seem to 'need' to charge someone whether they are at fault or not.

[minux]

Jester, on Australia Roads pedestrians always have right of way on a road. Just check the Australian Road Rules. Why do you think the driver is fined when some idiot walks out from behind a van, regardless of crossing or not?

[CSP]

Jester, on Australia Roads pedestrians always have right of way on a road. Just check the Australian Road Rules. Why do you think the driver is fined when some idiot walks out from behind a van, regardless of crossing or not?

Yup - hence my post earlier in the thread. It's ridiculous but true!

[Jesterarts]

I see... although I've been reviewing the Australian Road Rules and have found no mention that pedestrians have right of way in all cases.

http://www.woj.com.au/AustRoadRulespts1-21.pdf

I did however find:

236 Pedestrians not to cause a traffic hazard or obstruction
(1) A pedestrian must not cause a traffic hazard by moving into the
path of a driver.
Offence provision.
(2) A pedestrian must not unreasonably obstruct the path of any
driver or another pedestrian.
Offence provision.
(3) For subrule (2), a pedestrian does not unreasonably obstruct the
path of another pedestrian only by travelling more slowly than
other pedestrians.

Point (1) is of interest in this situation I think.

This would be an intersting article to have access to:

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science...3434d1fdbf081c

But it's a paid resource, so if someone is REALLY keen they can go for it and let the rest of us know the conclusion.

[soop]

You would think the logic is simple.

Big car is going to do damage, so don't step infront of it. Its a hell of a lot easier for a 85kg person to stop then it is a 1500kg vehicle.

[minux]

You would think the logic is simple.

Big car is going to do damage, so don't step infront of it. Its a hell of a lot easier for a 85kg person to stop then it is a 1500kg vehicle.

Logic in todays society no longer exists, it went out the door with common sense.

[Tsunamix]

The law is pretty clear. While pedestrians have the right of way at all times, pedestrians must behave responsibly too.

If some kid runs out onto the road in front of a car that is moving within the law and limits, it is not the drivers fault. If the man crossing the road was crossing illegally, agaist the lights or something, or around a corner such that the driver had very little or no warning, then he is not going to be reamed. Pedestrians, like drivers, must take responsibility for their actions.

that being said, if the driver was on a ped xing or the driver was not driving within the law then he is up for vehicular manslaughter. Aggravated vehicular manslaughter if he was hooning.

Need more info to say.

[Junny]

what he gets from the cops is nothing compared to the shit his gonna give himself for the years to come