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    Should vehicular manslaughter’s laws be changed?  

    In December of 2007, an undercover cop was speeding early in the morning. He hit another car which killed the driver. The victim in this case was a 20 year old man. The undercover cop admitted to drinking the night before the accident. The victims’ mother wanted the undercover cop to serve jail time for the crime. After a year long investigation the undercover cop was issued a traffic ticket and did not serve any jail time. Why? The state’s attorney said there was not enough evidence to charge the undercover cop with vehicular manslaughter. In order to charge someone with vehicular manslaughter the state must prove the person was ‘grossly negligent’.  

    The victim’s mother went to Annapolis to support a new bill that would make it easier for prosecutors to convict reckless drivers. The goal is to create a middle ground between simple traffic citations and major felony charges such as vehicular manslaughter. Currently the standards to which someone must be proven negligent is very high. With a common middle ground, drivers may be charged with a misdemeanor instead of a traffic ticket. The proposal could give the reckless driver up to three years of jail time. Currently, in Maryland, littering laws may give those convicted jail time. However, there are very high standards for proving vehicular manslaughter.  

    Thirty other states have implemented laws that allow jail time even if vehicular manslaughter is not proven. Many other Maryland residents and families of victims support this new bill. A Rockville man was killed when riding his motorcycle after being hit by a truck. In that case, prosecutors could not meet the high standards of proving vehicular manslaughter. The trucker received a $500 traffic ticket. Many surviving family members were already distraught due to the accident, now they must watch as nothing is done to the at fault driver.  

    For the last four years this bill has not been passed. Why? The house judiciary committee chairman has failed to call a vote on the bill. Maryland legislative procedures indicate that the chairman has the ability to decide which purposed bills are able to be voted upon. So what can be done? Raising awareness to the public will create attention. Attention that is needed to help give this bill the consideration it needs. The committee chairman has said he has not decided if he will hold a vote on the bill this April.

    The legal information on this site is not intended to be legal advice.  Contact one of our experienced personal injury attorneys or lawyers today to get specific information and answers for your specific situation.

     

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