A 58-year-old man was discovered in Louisiana along LS 445 the morning of Nov. 11 by State Police Troop L. Authorities believed that the man had been there since before midnight the previous evening. According to initial reports of the accident site, the suspect vehicle was a maroon sedan that had hit the victim and fled the scene without offering assistance or alerting the police to the fatal accident.
Reports state that 19 days had passed before the driver surrendered himself for causing this fatal accident, but only after an off-duty police officer spotted his vehicle. Crime scene investigators believe that the bicyclist was struck from behind while riding northbound. There were no calls to emergency services in the wake of the accident. The driver is currently being charged with negligent homicide and hit and run driving.
Reports did not indicate if the victim died instantly from the impact, or if the coroner believes that he may have suffered on the side of the road after being struck. His family may be entitled to file a wrongful death suit against the driver in addition to the formal charges raised by the Louisiana district attorney. This fatal accident could possibly have been avoided, and certainly could have been reported so that the man could have received medical attention soon after the accident.
Leaving the scene of a hit and run fatal accident is very serious in Louisiana, and such drivers will face criminal charges by the state. The family in such an incident could be protected from this loss, financially at least, due to loss of income and financial support. They may seek to hire an experienced personal injury attorney to review the case, and provide legal assistance in bringing wrongful death charges against a negligent driver.
Source: amitetoday.com, “Alert off duty Trooper spots suspect’s vehicle in fatal Hammond hit and run of bicyclist,” Dec. 2, 2012