Vehicular Assault In Ohio

Vehicular Assault Cases In Columbus And Central Ohio
Unlike most people charged with a crime, a person charged with Vehicular Assault typically does not intend to commit an offense: they do not even expect an accident to happen. That means people from all walks of life may find themselves charged with Vehicular Assault. One isolated and unintentional incident for a person who otherwise leads an honorable life can lead to serious criminal charges.

The charges are serious. With the exception of Vehicular Homicide charges, the charges of Aggravated Vehicular Assault carry the toughest sentences of any vehicular crimes. Depending on the precise offense and circumstances, the sentence may be up to as much as 12 years in prison. For information on specific offenses and possible consequences, please see the Vehicular Assault Offenses And Penalties page.

If you find yourself facing Vehicular Assault charges, it is important to learn about your situation. This website is a good way to do that. Another good resource for information is the Ohio Vehicular Assault Guide. That guide answers most of the questions people have when facing charges of Vehicular Assault. It can be purchased online, and the PDF version of the guide can be downloaded for free from this website.

Vehicular Assault Evidence
The evidence is everything the prosecution and defense may introduce in court. It typically begins with the accident but may also include underlying circumstances surrounding the accident. The evidence includes law enforcement’s investigation of the accident and may also involve accident reconstruction and ‘black box’ reports from electronic data recorders. It includes the statements of witnesses, the statements of the drivers, and the reports of law enforcement officers.

For cases involving the allegation that you were under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, there may be alcohol/drug influence reports, drug recognition evaluations, and field sobriety testing results. If there was a test of your breath, blood or urine, the evidence will include results of the chemical tests administered to determine the levels of alcohol and/or drugs in those bodily substances.

Vehicular Assault Defenses
There are viable defenses to the charges of Vehicular Assault. The specific defenses asserted in a given case depend on the facts of the case and the allegations in the complaint or indictment. Some defenses address the allegation your driving caused the accident. Other defenses address the allegation you were ‘under the influence’ or ‘over the limit’.

For all charges of Vehicular Assault, the prosecution must prove your operation of a vehicle caused serious physical harm to another person. As the proof comes primarily from the accident investigation and reconstruction, the defenses are designed to show the conclusions of the investigation and reconstruction were flawed.

For some charges of Aggravated Vehicular Assault, the prosecution must prove you committed the offense of Operating a Vehicle under the Influence (OVI). The prosecution does that by demonstrating your driving was impaired by alcohol and/or drugs or you were operating the vehicle with a prohibited concentration of alcohol and/or drugs in your system. Some defenses are asserted to show the evidence does not prove you were ‘under the influence’, and some defenses are used to demonstrate you were not ‘over the limit’.

Lawyers For Ohio Vehicular Assault Cases
Although these cases are challenging, an effective lawyer can help. To be effective, the lawyer must understand the evidence used in Vehicular Assault cases. The lawyer must also have experience litigating serious vehicular crimes, and it is often helpful if the lawyer has expertise in DUI/OVI defense.

The lawyers at the Dominy Law Firm have the knowledge and experience to effectively defend clients charged with Vehicular Assault: they wrote the Ohio Vehicular Assault Guide. The firm’s focus is representation for serious vehicular crimes, and we have been representing clients in Vehicular Assault cases since 1997.

If you would like more information about our firm, please see the About Us page. If you would like to talk about how we can help with your Vehicular Assault case, please submit a CONTACT FORM or call 614-717-1177. The initial consultation is free, and we charge flat fees, so you will know the exact fee before representation begins.