A DUI in Las Vegas that involves injury or death is one of the worst situations a defendant can be put in. On top of the possibility of jail time, license revocation, and fees owed to the state, the defendant will have to worry about paying compensation to the victim or their families. Some defendants and even DUI defense attorneys consider the DUI compensation in Las Vegas to be worse than most of the non-financial penalties a defendant will have to deal with due to how high it can get.
Nevada’s state laws regarding compensation for DUI-related accidents are some of the toughest legal measures in the country, not only because they exact a high price for such cases, but because they can be punitive in measure; that is, imposing a high monetary value for compensation is a means to discourage future instances of the crime. You would want to avoid this as much as possible because it has a high possibility of ruining your finances for the long term.
To have a better idea of how DUI compensation works, let’s take a look at some factors that courts use to determine how much DUI compensation a defendant must pay in Las Vegas.
Driver Negligence
In legal terms, negligence refers to a defendant’s failure to exercise due caution in circumstances that led to the DUI incident. The level of driver negligence depends on factors of their own, but in the case of a DUI charge the prosecution has to prove that the cause of the negligence was the alcoholic influence on the driver. Accidents due to reckless driving equate to lower compensation because the driver in question was fully functional during the accident, and was only involved in the incident due to other factors like distracted driving or mechanical issues.
Medical Care Fees
Medical fees form the bulk of compensation for DUI cases that involve other parties, with the accused expected to pay for the victims’ hospitalization and/or therapy fees. These payouts include anything from basic slings and bandages to complicated surgeries. Note that the court determines how long the defendant is expected to provide for the victims’ medical needs, including a set period after the initial hospitalization. In the event that the defendant runs out of funds after compensating for the medical fees, the defendant will not be liable to extend his or her compensation. He or she is only obligated to follow the calculated period set by the courts; anything else beyond that will be on the victim.
Work Restrictions
Severe injuries sustained from a DUI-induced accident can affect the victim’s ability to work. Generally this means that they will be bedridden or at least recuperating at home for an extended period. In worse situations, however, the incident may permanently affect a person’s ability to continue with their current profession; for example, a permanent arm injury can prevent the victim from being able to work as a construction worker at the same capacity that they did before the incident. This is called loss of earning capacity, where the victim loses their ability to continue with their current profession due to certain factors (in this case, the aforementioned injury). A victim is eligible to collect compensation due to loss of earning capacity, and it may not be limited to physical wounds in some circumstances (for example, the psychological trauma may have affected a person’s ability to drive again, a terrible loss for someone in the passenger or transport industry).
Dram Shop Laws
Dram shop laws refer to laws that hold establishments responsible for selling alcoholic substances to an individual involved in a crime immediately after the purchase (usually DUI). These special laws vary from state to state, depending on previous incidents involving such establishments. In the case of Nevada, dram shop laws have limited enforcement, meaning that any DUI-related cases involving intoxicating substances purchased from these shops do not indemnify them towards the victim, provided the defendant is above the 21-year-old legal threshhold.
Intentional Injuries
Some DUI cases may actually be premeditated; that is, the defendant may have planned to enact violence on the victim, and the intoxication was either only circumstantial or an insinuating factor to the incident. A victim is eligible to higher compensation if the prosecution can prove that the defendant had a clear and present intent to hurt the victim, regardless of the DUI.
Wrongful Death
DUI that involves fatalities require a higher compensation than one that only involves injuries. On top of paying for medical fees, the accused will also compensate the victims’ families for funeral expenses. In some situations it might also include paying for bringing the victim’s body home if they live out-of-state.
These are just some of the more common factors that determine how much compensation you must pay if you are convicted with a DUI in Las Vegas. There can be other items that fit specific circumstances and may cover many other items beyond the coverage of this article. Consult with your trusted DUI attorney in Las Vegas for more information.
https://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/dui-victim-compensation-factors.html