In a state with as many drivers as California, being on freeways and roads can sometimes be dangerous. Car accidents can cause more than just damage to your car, they can cause injury to another person and, in the most extreme cases, death. Vehicular manslaughter is a serious criminal charge in California and recent legislative changes are making the potential penalties for it stiffer. Currently, vehicular manslaughter is defined as drunk driving, gross negligence, speeding, reckless driving or a hit and run collision that results in the death of another person. Vehicular manslaughter cases are generally assessed lesser punishments than other types of manslaughter or murder charges since they tend to occur by accident and without premeditation or the intent to kill. In 2008, however, Governor Schwarzenneger signed into law a slight amendment to the language of California state driver's license application. Anyone who applies for their first driver's license or is renewing their current license after July 1, 2008 must sign an application that states:
"I am hereby advised that being under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or both, impairs the ability to safely operate a motor vehicle. Therefore, it is extremely dangerous to human life to drive while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or both. If I drive while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or both, and as a result, a person is killed, I can be charged with murder." (Veh. Code, § 13385, subd. (a)."
This is big news since the penalties for murder and vehicular manslaughter are, or were, very different. Murder can carry anything from 15 years to life in a state prison. Penalties for vehicular manslaughter cases can be anything from up to one year in a county jail to six years or more depending on the circumstances of surrounding the offence. A vehicular manslaughter case that involved a drunk driver can be "upgraded" to a murder offense since the driver in question has signed that application. The legal jargon and its implications in a vehicular manslaughter case can be extremely confusing and the legal process intimidating. If you have been charged with vehicular manslaughter, you need an experienced criminal defense lawyer by your side to fight for your freedom. Call the attorneys at Rodriguez, Lewis & Kahn right away to begin preparing your case.
