A case involving both DUI and hit-and-run is more complex than a DUI allegation alone. A collision may involve damage to another person’s property, an injured person, or both. Injuries can add further consequences.
Although the charges are distinct, the prosecution may use the circumstances of the hit-and-run as evidence in the DUI case. It may argue, for example, that impairment prevented the driver from realizing a collision occurred.
Alternatively, the prosecution may argue that the driver left because they knew they were impaired and wanted to avoid a DUI investigation. These possible arguments make it important to evaluate how the evidence for each charge may affect the other.