Flipped Gazelle
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According to Florida?s DUI manslaughter law, there are exceptions under what is called ?causation? of an accident. In short, someone who is driving drunk and causes an accident is not necessarily responsible if the other party did something to contribute to the accident. Florida statute 316.119 was changed in the 1980s to reflect that after a state Supreme Court judge ruled that the state?s previous strict liability standard on drunken drivers was essentially unfair.
The exception is based on the idea that if a drunken driver stopped at an intersection was hit by another car and the driver of the other car died, the drunken driver should not be held responsible.
?There are a number of issues in that case that may allow him to get off with regard to causation,? said attorney George Charnota, who has practiced law in South Florida for nine years and is a former prosecutor. Charnota is not involved in Stallworth?s case, but said the reports he has read about the case indicate the defense could use causation as an angle to aid Stallworth.
In this case, Reyes allegedly was jaywalking at the time he was hit and killed by Stallworth. If Reyes was jaywalking, it could be argued he contributed to the accident. In addition, Stallworth claimed to have flashed his lights and honked his horn at Reyes, which is being interpreted by Stallworth?s side as a way of warning Reyes to get out of the way.