RI Drunk Driving Accident

Are Penalties Different if an Accident is Involved?
Conviction for DUI in the state of Rhode Island carries several severe penalties including fines, jail time, and the suspension of your license. However, the severity of these penalties may be influenced not only by the number of prior DUI convictions you have, but whether you caused your RI drunk driving accident.

Drunk driving accidents in Rhode Island

If you are responsible for causing a drunk driving accident in RI, you may be subject to additional litigation and prosecution beyond criminal charges, depending on how severe the accident proved to be.  The additional litigation may fall under the following categories:

• Civil litigation: Victims injured in a drunk driving accident or their families may bring a civil personal injury lawsuit against the drunk driver in order to recover losses caused by the accident.
• Criminal litigation: After a drunk driving accident, the driver may face criminal charges in addition to DUI, including:
  • DUI assault, if someone was injured in the accident
  • Manslaughter or murder, depending on your degree of criminal negligence, if the accident led to a fatality

These charges bring additional criminal penalties beyond those for DUI.

Additional drunk driving accident penalties

The penalties surrounding a DUI accident in Rhode Island are severe and life changing. You should consult with the experienced RI DUI attorney at the Law Offices of Richard S. Humphrey immediately if you are facing charges for a first, second, or third DUI offense.

If the DUI accident in question was fatal or caused serious injury, it can lead to charges of vehicular manslaughter. Such a crime is punishable by prison and heavy fines. Even if the accident only led to an injury, you may be subject to similar incarceration, as well as legal liability for the health care bills of victims.

If you caused a drunken driving accident and fled the scene, you are guilty of hit and run. In this case, the judge or jury reviews the details of the case and determine an appropriate penalty. Such a crime is often consider a felony, and may bring with it the following penalties:

Additional penalties may be imposed if you endangered a child while driving under the influence.

Drunk driving accident defense in Rhode Island

The Law Offices of Richard S. Humphrey understands that legal troubles are never convenient—especially DUI accidents, stops and arrests. In order to make our legal services more helpful and more immediate, we provide an active 24/7 call response service at 401-685-0054. Contact the Law Offices of Richard S. Humphrey today if you need help regarding drunk driving defense in RI.