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I have been charged with careless driving and failure to notify a police officer of an accident, simply because a witness claimed I was responsible. The witness claimed that my small economy car allegedly tore a bumper off a 4-runner, with no damage to my car. I'm not responsible. Isn't the lack of physical damage to my vehicle stronger than the story of the witness?
The fact is that once a complaint has been made, and the police or DA initiate a criminal type action, it is necessary to defend that action or try to get the police to withdraw it (which is very dangerous unless handled by a knowledgeable attorney as anything you say will be used against you). If the matter comes up for trial the government must prove its case. Absent photos or your confession or admission it has to call the complaining witness and you can cross-examine her. They must prove you are guilty (you need not prove you are innocent). One way a lawyer would cross-examine her is to make her hone in on details that shows she is lying or was not in a position to observe (what color was the car, model, make, time of day, etc.), to bring out possible bias, to show she made inconsistent statements, other reasons to suggest lack of reliability, such as the number of times she has sued people. If she says your car was damaged, then your lawyer would ask her to describe it, etc. At some point if the judge does not dismiss the case for failure of proof after her testimony, it likely would make sense for you to testify and say you did not hit her and there was no damage. But the fact that there was no damage to your car only suggests(though perhaps strongly), but does not prove, that you did not hit her. |
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