Oroville CHP Seeks Help with Fatal Hit-and-Run
I’m Ed Smith, an Oroville personal injury lawyer. The Oroville area California Highway Patrol (CHP) is currently seeking help from members of the public with locating a suspect in a fatal hit-and-run collision that took place early in the morning on Sunday, February 11, 2018.
I’d like to offer condolences to those affected by this tragic incident.
Accident Details
The accident happened at approximately 12:35 a.m. on Riceton Highway a short drive north of the Afton Road intersection. CHP officers who responded to the incident report that, upon arrival, they found 23-year-old Durham Resident Richard Dwain Benish dead inside of his crashed vehicle.
Investigators have stated that their preliminary investigations revealed that another vehicle struck Benish’s vehicle and fled the scene of the accident prior to the arrival of responding officers. No information about what type of vehicle the hit-and-run driver may have been driving is currently available.
Investigation
CHP’s Oroville office has requested that any persons with information regarding the whereabouts, associates, or activities of Benish in the 24 hours preceding the accident, or any information directly related to the collision contact the non-emergency number (530) 332-1200. Callers are instructed to ask to speak to Officer Paul Vue.
Butte County Hit-and-Runs
Butte County is no stranger to traumatic hit-and-run accidents. Data taken from UC Berkeley research reports suggest that, during 2006-2016, Butte County was the site of 617 injury-related hit-and-run collisions. These collisions caused a total of 16 fatal injuries, 74 severe injuries, 325 moderate injuries, and 379 minor injuries.
Those injured in Butte County hit-and-runs are most frequently vehicle drivers, with driver injuries accounting for about 44 percent of total Butte hit-and-run injuries. After drivers, passengers were the next most common, accounting for about 28 percent. Pedestrians and bicyclists made up about 15 and 12 percent respectively.
Uninsured/Under-Insured Motorist Protection
When an errant driver can’t be held responsible for an accident such as in the case of a hit-and-run, drivers with Uninsured/Under-Insured Motorist Coverage (UM) are usually able to receive compensation from their insurance company to pay for damages. California law does not require drivers to have this type of coverage and the amount of insurance available to drivers for these types of claims is determined by the coverage plan purchased by the driver seeking compensation from their insurance company.
For instance, if a driver purchases a UM plan with $15,000 in coverage and they suffer an injury caused by an uninsured or hit-and-run driver, the injured driver can only collect $15,000 dollars from their insurer, regardless of how severe or expensive their injury is. For this reason, I recommend buying a plan worth at least $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident in coverage. To learn more about UM coverage, see my website.
More Content by Ed Smith, a Personal Injury Lawyer in Oroville ~
Oroville Personal Injury Lawyers
I’m Ed Smith, an Oroville personal injury lawyer. If your loved one has been killed by a reckless driver, please reach out to me by visiting AutoAccident.com, or by calling either (530) 392-9400 or (800) 404-5400 for free, friendly legal advice.
I’ve helped Oroville residents obtain fair recompense for personal injury and wrongful death damages since 1982.
Read my clientele feedback here:
I’m a Million Dollar Advocates Forum member, meaning I’m a top-rated trial lawyer with past settlements or verdicts that exceeded one million USD or more.
My Previous Verdicts and Settlements can be read here.
For valuable info and current reporting on personal injury law and car crashes in Northern California, go to my website, AutoAccident.com.
pic: “police lights” by tevenet via PB
:ms [cs 664] cv