The CHP released some alarming data this week: hit and runs are soaring in both San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. Even more scary: most drivers who flee are never caught.
Hit and run accidents are up 44 percent in San Bernardino County over the last five years and 39 percent in Riverside County during that same time span, reports The Press Enterprise. In those accidents, 73 pedestrians and 14 cyclists were killed.
The newspaper notes that in most cases, the damage is strictly to property and the driver responsible is hardly ever found.
“Unfortunately the majority of those go unsolved,” Lt. Mark Rossi, who served as traffic commander for the Riverside Police Department for almost 3 years, told the newspaper. He added that even when the vehicle involved in a hit and run is found, it is still hard to prosecute.
“I still have to prove that you were the one driving it,” Rossi said.
Police say that most drivers who flee do so because they have a suspended license (or no license at all), are under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or are glued to their smartphone and not paying attention to the road.
“Texting, Facebooking, talking, GPS, whatever on their smartphone was more important than driving,” Cochran said. Drivers then flee believing that cops will have proof that the driver was distracted.
If you are the victim of a hit and run, the DMV recommends getting as much information as you possibly can – make, model, license plate – and to look around for any possible witnesses. You should also call the police, if necessary.
If the hit and run happens when you are away from your parked car, still make note of time, location, and damage.
