Manslaughter Compared to Leaving the Scene

Several of our readers have compared the crime of manslaughter to the crime of leaving an accident with injuries. Surprisingly, at least to us, some have found the latter worse than the former. How does the law see it?

Manslaughter: Person recklessly causes the death of another person. The penalty for manslaughter in Alabama is two to 20 years in prison.

Leaving Scene of Accident with Injuries: Class C Felony. The penalty for this crime is one year and one day to 10 years in prison.

There you have the law as Alabama looks at it. The crime of manslaughter does have some nuances to it. The 20 year sentence is reserved for gun crimes. Any accident involving a motorized vehicle would bring 15 years. Except (yes there's an except there) some cases are classified as so wanton as to deserve a type of murder designation. We'll leave that distinction to our attorney friends, but let's just say it's usually applied more often in cases where alcohol is involved.

No matter how you may look at it, the law in Alabama deems the crime of manslaughter worse than merely leaving the scene of an accident with injuries.

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