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Eubanks v. Commonwealth6/28/1994
OPINION BY JUDGE JERE M.H. WILLIS, JR.
On appeal from his conviction of leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident involving personal injury to another, in violation of Code §§ 46.2-894 and 46.2-900, Kenneth Nelson Eubanks contends that the trial court erred in instructing the jury on the elements of Code § 46.2-894. We agree and reverse the judgment of the trial court.
On May 18, 1992, while driving on Route 20 south of Charlottesville, Eubanks's car struck the rear of David Thatcher's Blazer, causing the Blazer to run off the road and to come to rest upside-down in a deep ditch. Shortly thereafter, while on routine patrol, Officer Barbour arrived and helped Thatcher from his vehicle. The rescue squad took Thatcher to the hospital where doctors treated him for a broken collar bone, cuts, and bruises.
Shortly before arriving at the accident, Officer Barbour passed Eubanks's car, a "yellow older model vehicle," traveling at a "very low rate of speed." Barbour noticed that the car had extensive front end damage. The driver of the car made no attempt to get the officer's help. Shortly thereafter, Barbour found Thatcher's vehicle in the ditch. Thatcher told Barbour that a man driving a yellow car had hit his vehicle.
Lawrence and Todd Richardson, members of the Scottsville Volunteer Fire Department, received notification of an automobile accident on Route 20 South. En route to the scene, they noticed a vehicle, with "steam coming from the engine compartment," parked at a country store 1.9 miles south of the accident. They stopped and Todd Richardson asked Eubanks, who apparently owned the car, if it had been involved in an accident. Eubanks said that he had been in an accident on Route 20. When Richardson asked if he had reported the accident to the police, Eubanks said that he had not, but that he had a wrecker on the way. Lawrence Richardson, trying to prepare an incident report, asked Eubanks where the accident had happened. Eubanks answered that he had hit a bank on the side of Route 20, north of the store. He mentioned no other vehicle.
Officer Anderson then arrived at the country store. Eubanks told Anderson that he had been involved in an accident on Route 20 and that he had driven to the store to use the telephone. He said that he had called the police but the dispatcher told him the accident had already been reported. Anderson took Eubanks back to the scene of the accident. There, Eubanks told Officer Barbour that "he was driving along and he was hit by a white truck." After Barbour advised him of his Miranda rights, Eubanks said "he was traveling along and . . . he said he did remember hitting the truck, he was not sure how it went off the road, and that he drove to the store to call for help."
The driveway of a house enters Route 20 just north of the accident scene. Several homes are located along the 1.9 mile stretch of road from the accident scene to the country store where Eubanks stopped. The shoulder of Route 20 at the accident scene is wide enough to park a car without obstructing traffic.
Allison Shotwell, the communications officer responsible for answering emergency telephone calls and police dispatches, testified that she received a report of the accident from Officer Barbour. He initially reported debris on the road and an overturned vehicle and later reported sighting a yellow vehicle with front end damage. Ms. Shotwell testified that because she was tracking this accident, she would have been told of all calls relating to it. Other than one phone c
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