Hit-and-run driver turns herself in

A hit-and-run accident can land you in prison for a long time. In Pennsylvania, there is a three year jail sentence minimum for those arrested for hit-and-run. This comes after the recently enacted “Kevin’s Law,” that raised the mandatory minimum punishment of hit-and-run drivers from one year to three years in an effort to fix the loophole that use to come with DUI cases. Prior to Kevin’s Law, it was technically “smarter” for a drunk driver to flee the scene because there was no way to find out if the suspect had been drunk if the accident took place days prior. Kevin’s Law was put into place so that there is no reward for leaving the scene. The law is named after Kevin Miller, a 5-year-old boy who was killed by a hit-and-run driver just before Christmas in 2012 in Wilkes-Barre, PA. This past Tuesday, a woman from Brentwood turned herself in to police in Mt. Lebanon, confessing to the hit-and-run of a pedestrian, according to authorities. The 55-year-old woman was charged with personal injury from a vehicle accident, careless driving, and not telling police immediately after the accident. After her arraignment, the woman was released. The Mt. Lebanon deputy chief told reporters that the suspect admitted she had been driving along the nine hundred block of McNeilly Road last Thursday afternoon when she says she swerved to avoid oncoming traffic. She says that she heard a thump, but that she assumed she had sideswiped a telephone poll or guardrail. She said the near-accident shook her up, so she did not stop to evaluate the damage until later. She said that’s when she realized she had likely hit a person. The victim, a 42-year-old woman, suffered fractured vertebra bones and broken ribs. She was rushed to UPMC Mercy after the accident and was released three days later on Sunday. Her injuries are non-life-threatening and she is expected to make a full recovery. If you have been involved in a hit-and-run, you will definitely need an experienced Pittsburgh criminal defense attorney to be your advocate, especially in light of the recently enacted Kevin’s Law. Call Gary Gerson with any questions you might have at 412-219-6875. Your initial consultation is free. Source: TribLive.com, “Brentwood woman charged in hit-and-run in Mt. Lebanon” 28 October 2014