Alarming Death Toll: Sacramento’s Hit-and-Run Drivers Revealed
Between 2018 and 2022, a Sacramento Bee analysis of law enforcement and coroner reports revealed that approximately 140 individuals died in hit-and-run accidents in Sacramento County. Out of these victims, around 86 were pedestrians, while the remainder included bicyclists, car passengers, and motorcyclists. Shockingly, five victims were younger than 17 years old, and four were over 80. Many of these tragic incidents occurred on busy, deteriorating roads within Sacramento, with numerous unidentified victims indicating a possibility of homelessness.
The astonishing number of fatalities from hit-and-run incidents in Northern California and the Central Valley surpasses even Orange County, the nation’s sixth-most populous county. In fact, Sacramento County witnessed 31 hit-and-run deaths last year alone, marking the highest number recorded in at least the past ten years. This information is based on a comprehensive examination of local and state law enforcement records and records maintained by the Sacramento coroner, emphasizing the severity of the situation.
Top 10 Largest California Counties
In the ranking of California’s 10 largest counties, Sacramento County stands out with one of the highest per capita rates of hit-and-run fatalities, measured as the number of incidents per 100,000 individuals annually. The counties encompassed within this comparison are as follows:
- 8.2 Fresno
- 7.5 San Bernardino
- 7.1 Sacramento
- 6.2 Los Angeles
- 6.1 Riverside
- 4.3 San Diego
- 3.7 Alameda
- 3.4 Orange
- 3.2 Santa Clara
- 2.6 Contra Costa
Why Drivers Flee a Crash Scene
Julia Griswold, a researcher at the University of California, Berkeley’s Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC), played a leading role in a study that delved into a decade’s worth of pedestrian fatalities. Griswold’s research and other studies revealed that young men with prior traffic violations or license suspensions were frequently responsible for fatal hit-and-run incidents. According to Griswold, drivers who tested positive for alcohol or had a history of DUI were more likely to flee the scene. Additionally, drivers were less inclined to flee when the victims were young or elderly. Out of the 107 identified victims in Sacramento County over the past five years, very few were under 20 or above 75 years old.
In cases where witnesses are present during a collision, a new California law, effective from January 1, 2023, aims to assist law enforcement in locating the responsible driver. The revival of California’s dormant Yellow Alert system was spearheaded by Assemblyman Jim Patterson, a representative from Fresno who took the initiative to author the bill. This system enables the California Highway Patrol and CalTrans to broadcast license plate numbers and vehicle descriptions of hit-and-run incidents on digital freeway signs, similar to the well-known Amber Alert system.
However, as of May 15th, the Yellow Alert system has only been employed once, aiding in the apprehension of a hit-and-run driver in Los Angeles County, according to the California Highway Patrol.
How to Prevent Hit and Runs
California’s penalties for individuals convicted of leaving the scenes of fatal accidents are considerably more lenient than some other states, and recent attempts to increase these penalties have been unsuccessful in the state legislature.
In California, those guilty of causing someone’s death in a hit-and-run incident can face a maximum sentence of up to four years. However, data from the American Automobile Association (AAA) reveals that hit-and-run drivers could potentially receive prison terms of up to 20 years in certain states like Nevada and Connecticut. Assemblyman Patterson introduced Gavin’s Law, a proposed legislation in California named after Gavin Gladding, a highly regarded vice principal at Clovis Unified. Gavin tragically lost his life in a devastating hit-and-run accident in 2018, prompting the initiative to establish this law. The proposed law aimed to enhance prison sentences for individuals convicted of deadly hit-and-run accidents. In Gladding’s case, the driver fled the scene to avoid a DUI arrest and was later discovered to have concealed evidence of the crash. The driver received a three-year prison sentence but was released after serving only 13 months. If the driver had remained at the scene and been determined to be intoxicated, the likely sentence would have been significantly longer.
Patterson expressed the need to address this problematic loophole in the law, stating that if an individual was found to be impaired, concealed evidence, attempted to involve others in covering up the incident, and left the scene without providing aid, it should be within a judge’s discretion to add two, four, or even six years to the sentence. Although the bill successfully cleared the state’s Assembly public safety committee in March, it faced a setback as it did not advance further after being reviewed by the crucial appropriations committee last month. This marked the third time the bill has been unsuccessful since its initial introduction by Patterson in 2019. While longer prison sentences may bring greater justice to the victims’ families, some experts argue that harsher penalties will have limited effectiveness in preventing hit-and-run accidents. They believe government officials should prioritize improving pedestrian and cyclist safety instead.
According to Berkeley researcher Griswold, it is unlikely that drivers consider the specific penalties of each state when deciding whether to flee the scene of a fatal crash. Griswold believed that imposing more severe consequences for hit-and-runs might not be the most effective approach. Instead, she emphasizes the importance of preventing such accidents in the first place by designing a transportation system that minimizes the occurrence of severe and fatal injuries. Unfortunately, dangerous roads like Elk Grove Florin Road, which essentially functions as a mini expressway, and other problematic thoroughfares such as Stockton Boulevard, Florin Road, and Watt Avenue contribute to the prevalence of hit-and-run incidents in the Sacramento region.
Injuries in an Accident
If you have recently suffered injuries in an automobile accident in Sacramento, it’s crucial to understand that you have the right to seek compensation by initiating a personal injury claim against the responsible party. However, navigating this process can be difficult without the assistance of a skilled car crash attorney. To gain insight into how our legal team can support you in your case, we invite you to watch the informative video below, which outlines our comprehensive range of services.
California Personal Injury Lawyer
I’m Ed Smith, a Sacramento personal injury lawyer. For compassionate guidance following an accident in Sacramento that resulted in injury or the loss of a loved one, contact our experienced legal team at (916) 921-6400 or (800) 404-5400. We offer free and friendly consultations to provide you with the support you need.
Since 1982, our injury attorneys have consistently achieved exceptional verdicts and settlements for our clients in accident cases. Contact us and discover how we can assist you during this challenging time.
Photo by Karl Solano on Unsplash
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