Updated on: 10/20/2021
Police are searching for a suspect after a hit-and-run collision left one dead in Parkland on Saturday.
According to authorities, the collision took place on 016th St S and Ainsworth Ave S after an argument between two men ended with one man getting into a vehicle and striking the other before crashing his vehicle and fleeing on foot.
While authorities claim they know the identity of the driver however no arrests were made on the day of the incident.
Police claim they believe the crash to be intentional.
Intentional Acts and Personal Injury Recoveries
While loved ones of the victim may take some small solace in knowing that the driver responsible is likely to be found and brought to justice, they may face additional challenges in any eventual pursuit of damages from the driver or his insurance.
Insurance companies have clauses in their contracts that protect them from paying out claims for "intentional acts" meaning that should it be found that the driver did intend to strike the victim the insurance company would have an out to avoid any kind of responsibility for their drivers' actions.
Victims' representatives would be left relying on any amount of uninsured motorist coverage carried by the victim or other resources such as the crime victims compensation fund for any sort of relief.
This clause can leave the families of victims fighting to prove that a drivers actions were not intentional, which could lead to less harsh criminal punishment if found to be the case, but open the door for a more substantial recovery from the drivers' insurance allowing things like burial costs and some amount of damage caused to the lives of the victims families to be recovered.
Proving intent is one of the hardest and most contentious elements in both criminal and civil court and should not be taken likely, victims facing cases in which intent is on the table should make sure to have the best legal team on their side, like the professional and experienced team of Washington wrongful death attorneys at Davis Law Group.
To request a free case evaluation, victims and their loved ones can call 206-727-4000 or use the chat or contact options on this page 24 hours a day seven days a week.
