Help/advice with a hit and run

[dmash]

Originally Posted by donas

Every state has different requirements. Beyond that, every officer has the discretion to make what charges they deem to fit. There is no point going back and forth on here, we are all just trying to help the OP. As far as private property, in the state I worked, all it took was a sign saying law enforcement has jurisdiction on the property and even speeding tickets could be written in a parking lot.

I can say with near certainty, that if somebody backed into/swiped a car in a parking lot and never got out of the car, it would immediately be dismissed in court for anything 'criminal'. As you're fully aware, it's innocent until proven guilty, and in this situation it's impossible to prove their guilt. Any responding officer can charge whatever they want, but end of day that means nothing until tried. A newly minted public defender could get that case thrown out with one call.

but yes, I digress, I was only bringing up in case it lit a fire with OP to pursue litigation, as it's going to be a waste of his money/time/resources. It's way easier here to just get it fixed with insurance, chalk it up as a horrible person not taking responsibility and hoping karma takes care of the rest. We're definitely all in agreement here that OP got the short end of the stick.