Fatal Hit-and-Run Crash in Oceanside
Hours after a September 2025 hit-and-run crash in Oceanside, authorities arrested a 65-year-old woman and charged her with the crime.
Oceanside police responded to a report of a pedestrian who was hit by a vehicle around 10:20 p.m. on eastbound Oceanside Boulevard, west of El Camino Real.
The victim, an adult male, died from his injuries. Investigators identified the suspect vehicle involved in the incident as a 2020 Ford Ranger by using city surveillance cameras and license plate reader technology, OPD stated.
Authorities contacted the vehicle’s owner at her residence, where investigators also found the Ford Ranger suspected of being involved in the collision. The owner admitted to being the driver of the vehicle at the time of the crash. Police said she also showed signs of intoxication.
Hit-and-Run Criminal and Civil Cases
Police investigators are rarely this diligent in hit-and-run matters. Typically, unless the tortfeasor (negligent driver) voluntarily comes forward, these cases go unsolved. There’s a good chance that the tortfeasor in this case will face criminal punishment. Even if that happens, a criminal case doesn’t fully compensate the victims of hit-and-run crashes. Only an Oceanside personal injury lawyer can do that.
Most likely, a criminal case hinges on the tortfeasor’s voluntary statement. If police officers failed to read the woman her rights or pressured her into confessing, her statement is not “voluntary” for criminal court purposes.
However, an Oceanside personal injury lawyer could probably use an involuntary statement in civil court. Constitutional rights, like the Fifth Amendment’s right to remain silent, only apply in criminal cases.
Occasionally, judges order defendants to pay partial restitution as part of their probation. A state crime victims fund is also available in a few cases. At best, these sources only pay economic damages, mostly medical bills.
An Oceanside personal injury lawyer obtains compensation for additional economic losses, such as future lost wages in a fatal accident case, as well as compensation for emotional distress and other noneconomic losses. Additional punitive damages may be available as well, in an extreme case like an alcohol-fueled hit-and-run crash that kills someone who was simply crossing the street.
Alcohol-Related Wrecks in Criminal and Civil Court
Evidence issues also affect these cases in criminal or civil court, mostly because the purpose of these two forums is different. Criminal courts punish offenders and civil courts compensate victims.
In criminal court, a credible witness must place the defendant behind the wheel at or near the time of the wreck, in order to prove the “driving” element of a DUI-collision matter. Ownership of a vehicle probably isn’t enough to establish this element beyond any reasonable doubt, since anyone with the keys can drive any vehicle.
However, in civil court, the burden of proof is only a preponderance of the evidence (more likely than not). It’s more likely than not that the owner was driving a vehicle at a particular time. For this reason, in civil court, a lawyer wouldn’t need the tortfeasor’s confession. The circumstantial evidence alone is sufficient.
Criminal and civil courts are similar in other ways. For example, most criminal cases settle out of court (plea bargain), and most civil cases settle out of court as well.
Count on a Tough-Minded San Diego County Lawyer
Injury victims are entitled to substantial compensation. For a confidential consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer in Oceanside, contact the Pursley Law Firm. We routinely handle matters throughout the Golden State.
Source:
fox5sandiego.com/news/local-news/north-county/man-dies-after-hit-and-run-crash-in-oceanside/
