Hitting Deer or Other Animals

Just reading through this thread, and I have a question, to any of you who have hit a deer or other animal, whether it was day or night, have you ever NOT been able to tell what it was you were fixing to hit or did hit?

I mean did you ever confuse a deer with a mailbox? Or would you ever at any time whether driving a truck or small car like say the size of a saturn car or similar sized car, not be able to tell what you hit if you hit something? Especially if whatever you hit busted the windshield, and tore off the side mirror?

I am asking a serious question, and since imho most truck drivers are going to have techically driven a whole lot more than the average person that is on the road just going to work,home etc, when I saw this thread I thought I would ask, because the boy who killed my son claimed he thought he hit a mailbox or a deer, he also claims he did not know he had hit a person until someone told him later on. (this happened when it was still daylight, the sun was not at an angle to be in anyone's eye's, and it was not cloudy or foggy, or any obstructions of any kind in or near the road way).

I personally believe he knew what he did, because of where it happened and how it happened, but I was wondering how likely is it that someone who is driving especially someone driving a car, how likely is it that they would not be able to know what they hit if they hit something or someone while driving? Is it even remotely possible that someone could hit something or someone one and not know what they hit? Especially if it is on a road that is not obstructed, and does not have any lighting issues, or visiblity issues.

I hope this question sort of makes sense. and I am serious, I just have a hard time believing that someone could hit a person and then mistake a person for a deer or mail box and continue on down the road. Especially if the front windshield is busted almost all the way through, and the side mirror is torn completely off. And the roof of the car, front and back of car all have damage in addition to the windshield being busted to the point being I don't know how someone could even see to drive with all the cracks in the windshield, the windshield was caved in to where it sort of had a bowl appearance towards the drivers steering wheel, the news media showed us the pictures of the car not long after it was found is how I know all that, later we saw the car where it was parked before the police decided to cover it up.

I hope this is okay to ask here, because this really does bother me personally a lot.

Also my ds was not in the road, he was walking on the edge of the grass, (there was a witness who saw him walking not long before this, who saw him walking on the side of the road not in the road, and this was not a very narrow road, the police report has the car pictured as swerving hitting him then straightening up and going on down the road.

 

I've been in two wrecks involving animals.

Wreck 1- riding shotgun in my sister's Ford Escort 50 mph, dark night, a newfoundland (Large Dog) jumped out of a roadside lake, about 10 feet in front of the car. Both the car and dog were "totaled" Radiator broken, airbags deployed-breaking the windshield. Dog was launched diagonally across the road.

Wreck 2- Driving my F-150 to work, 45 mph 5am, foggy. Deer jumped out of the ditch into my right headlight and grille. Hooves didn't even touch pavement. $3k damage to truck. Discussion with police was: Are you hurt? No. Is the vehicle leaking fluid? No. Do you want the deer? No. (I was an hour from home and an hour from work and don't know how to gut/field dress a deer) Can the firemen have it? Yes.

In both cases, I knew that I had hit something, and what I hit. However, I consider myself a good and observant driver, and was sober, and not driving on the edge of people's lawns.

In NH, if the damage to your vehicle and/or the property you hit is $1k or greater, you must stop and report it. If you do not, you will be charged with Leaving the Scene of an Accident, which is no joke. If you hit a dog, you must stop and contact the owner if possible. IE: tag/ license.

Destroying a mailbox is a federal offense. Any way he tried to excuse his behavior, the kid's story doesn't hold water, in my opinion of course. (I'm no LEO though)

Stillwater: I hope this provides you with some peace of mind, and good luck. I can't imagine what you are going through. These kinds of wrecks seem have no good ending, usually with two people gone and their families grieving. (one dead, one in prison)

 

That's what I thought, and you're right it is hard for both side imho, the boy who killed our son has not been to trial yet, and has stated he didn't do anything wrong (this isn't hearsay from someone else telling me he said this, I was behind him at the court house and heard him say this to one of his friends that was with him)

He as also speeding, and also known to have been drinking, at a local bar. I try not to dwell on things but sometimes you can't help things that cross your mind, especially when you read about other cases in the news that have already been tried, and your still waiting on a court date. It has been two years so far and no trial.

People just need to pay attention to driving when they are driving imho, and not be driving after drinking alcohol especially, or any drug that causes impairment to the point being you don't remember or have enough sense to at least call 911 when you hit someone with your vechical. JMO.

Anyway some things in life are just hard and make no sense whatsoever. And this is one of them, and I really think this boy needs to not be driving or have access to a vechical but he is, because he hasn't yet been convicted. He isn't really all that young either he is in his thirties I just say boy because imho if someone can't tell the difference between animals, people and mailboxes they don't need to be driving anything, the same as no little child should be driving any thing either especially on public roads, hope that makes sense.

 

Someone who drives under the influence, hits pedestrians, and leaves the scene has certainly lost the privilege of operating a motor vehicle. To say the least.

 

I agree and that is partly what has been so hard since our sons death, this one is still driving and has not seen even one day in jail had a very low bond when he did go to the court house (due to the fact he is not considered a flight risk)

I think he should NOT be driving, but it's going to be a jury who will decide what if any type of punishment he faces, and when that will be is anyone's guess. So far it's at two years and counting since this happened.

Meanwhile my dh has taken a job that is keeping him gone a lot, and will probably keep driving otr like he is for a long time, because it keeps him from facing the realities that have happened, and things that he can't fix or change. At least that's my opinion at the moment.

Maybe there will be a trial this year and this one at least loose his privledges to drive, jailtime would be great but at least he needs to not be driving until he can remember or learn that there are certain things you do and don't do especially when driving.

 

In my perfect world anyone whom makes the decision to get behind the wheel and drive drunk would go to jail for attempted manslaughter, and if they harmed anyone go to jail for murder 1.

A few years (or ten) will make them think twice about doing it again a whole lot better then 'taking away their license' i mean, come on.... scary punishment there. Woot, so they just drive without i? Their chances of getting caught are poor.

Or... option two, get caught driving drunk, lose the car you got caught in.

 

I agree, I really think that someone who kills someone while driving drunk, needs to loose their vechical, liscense, and go to jail, and the priveledge of ever even owning a vechical again.They should have to walk everywhere, and I don't really think twenty or thirty years would be too long especially if they have put someone else in the grave yard because of their choice to drink and drive. And leave the scene after hitting someone.

 

Now if we could just figure out how to stop them before the kill someone

 

I think that it could be helpful to have sobriety check points in the parking lots of any bar or place that sells alcohol, then anyone who has purchased any alcohol at at all or is with someone who has purchased alcohol, can drive up to the entrance of the parking lot, and before they are allowed to pull out into the road they have to have a test to see if they are sober enough to drive, or something in that line.

I don't believe it would be entrapment either because anyone who is of legal age to drink is or should be able to know that drinking and driving is illegal, especially when you're drunk. And the best way imho to make sure you don't drive drunk is to NOT drive after you have drank any alcohol at all. But if you choose to do so, then anything that might help prevent you from causing someone else's death or even your own, such as parking lot sobriety points in every location that sells alcohol, and/or sobriety check points inside every bar, with pentalties(sp) for anyone who is drunk and getting behind the wheel of any vechical, and furthermore imho the pentality should be so harsh that no one would want to ever get behind the wheel drunk for any reason.

And personally I don't see a whole lot wrong with someone getting ten years first offense if they are driving drunk, and that is without ever having killed or damaged anyone or anything, and sometimes I really don't see a whole lot wrong with someone getting life in prison if they kill or injure someone to the point that person will live with the injuries for the rest of their life.

When a drunk destroys someone else's life it is hard not to want to see that person go stay in jail for a long time, and when that person is allowed to continue driving just because there has not been a trial yet, it is like saying it was okay for that person to drive drunk, leave the scene and go on their merry way, and waiting years to go to court if at all, is sending the message to other drunks to keep on driving, because even if your caught it'll take months or years to go to court, and you can keep your liscense in your pocket because you don't have to surrender it until you go to court. And it's just not a good thing in my opinion.

And personally I don't blame the police officer who catches the drunk, it is all the people who don't want to see their relative go to jail for a long time if at all, and the ones who don't want a prison built near their homes, and all the ones who want a high conviction rate based on plea bargains, that are imho meant to benifit the criminals, and are no real deterent from someone going out and doing the same thing again, or someone else seeing that the conviction rated a punishment that wasn't so bad, so it is not enough to deter them from doing the exact same thing that some one else did that was completely imho ignorant, and it is completely and totally ignorant to drink and drive. And I really don't care who it is that is drinking and driving or how many times they have done it before, just because they haven't gotten killed or killed someone the first one hundred times, doesn't mean that the drunk won't kill or get killed on the one hundredth and one time. JMO

 

I hit a deer last oct that just beat the snot out of the front end of the truck and part of the drivers side. The collision put the truck out of service. There was blood and bambi fur everywhere in the front and side where he slde to the back. Bad thing was a car following me too close got the worst of it. His little low rider ended up hitting the carcass the truck spit out. I ended up taking pictures of this incident after it happened just to cover my hide.