Florida is like many states in that it requires people involved in an accident to remain at the scene. This holds true in fender benders, serious crashes, crashes involving pedestrians, and crashes involving non-vehicle property. Drivers who decide to drive on will be charged with leaving the scene of an accident, also known as hit-and-run. They can face some serious penalties, depending on the severity of the accident. In a minor accident, such as backing into a parked car, leaving the scene can result in a fine of up to $500 and up to 60 days in jail. For an accident that causes injury, the penalties can differ based on the severity of the injury. Fleeing the scene of an accident involving an injury or death is a felony in Florida.
Click Orlando reports that a driver responsible for a crash allegedly offered the victim free food from Chili’s if he didn’t report the accident to police.
Police were dispatched to a report of a hit-and-run in Palm Bay on Sunday at approximately 6:40 p.m. The crash occurred in the area of Emerson Drive and Jupiter Boulevard.
The driver of a Nissan Altima he had been hit by a silver convertible occupied by two men. The men exited the vehicle. The driver of the convertible offered the victim free food from Chili’s if he didn’t report the accident to police. The victim also said that the passenger threatened to beat him up if he didn’t drop the incident.
When other vehicles got involved, the two men got into their vehicle and fled the scene. The victim was able to take down the license plate number of the vehicle involved.
Police were able to track down the owner of the vehicle and went to his home. 62-year-old Charles Bell was the registered owner of the vehicle. Police met with 42-year-old Robert Reed, the passenger, at the door.
Bell was charged with leaving the scene of an accident. Reed, who was upset that Bell was arrested, was charged with assault on a law enforcement officer.
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