Is Hit and Run a Felony in California? Vehicle Code 20001 and 20002 Explained

Q: Can I be convicted of hit and run if the accident was not my fault?

Yes. Fault is not an element of either statute. The crime is failing to stop, identify yourself, and render aid, and the California Supreme Court confirmed in People v. Carbajal (1995) 10 Cal.4th 1114 that the statute punishes the flight rather than the collision. A blameless driver who leaves can be convicted, although fault matters a great deal at sentencing and in restitution disputes.

Q: What if I did not know I hit anything?

Then you are not guilty, because knowledge is an element. The prosecutor must prove you knew, or should reasonably have known from the nature of the accident, that a collision causing damage or injury occurred. Slight contact in a parking lot with no damage to your own vehicle is the strongest version of this defense. Do not give a statement to police about what you felt or noticed until you have spoken with a lawyer, because those statements are what prosecutors use to prove knowledge.

Q: Can a hit and run charge be dismissed if I pay for the damage?

Often, yes, in property damage cases. Under Penal Code section 1377 and Penal Code section 1378, a misdemeanor hit and run can be dismissed through civil compromise when the property owner confirms in court or in writing that they have been fully compensated and consent to the dismissal. Misdemeanor diversion under Penal Code section 1001.95 is a second route to dismissal. Neither is available for injury cases under section 20001.

Q: Will a hit and run conviction affect my license?

Yes. A conviction under either section adds two points to your DMV record under Vehicle Code section 12810, and a felony injury conviction can lead to revocation. Separately, the DMV requires an SR 1 accident report within ten days under Vehicle Code section 16000 whenever there is injury or damage above the reporting threshold, regardless of fault.

Daniel Gramling, Esq.

9 minutes ago

12 min read

The short answer: Hit and run is a misdemeanor in California when the accident caused only property damage, charged under Vehicle Code section 20002, and it becomes a wobbler, meaning the prosecutor can file it as a misdemeanor or a felony, when someone other than the driver was injured or killed, charged under Vehicle Code section 20001. The crime is not causing the accident. The crime is leaving without stopping, identifying yourself, and, where someone is hurt, helping. That distinction drives every defense.

Why this matters in Southern California. Hit and run charges are common in the Inland Empire and Los Angeles County because parking lot collisions, freeway sideswipes, and late-night single-car crashes into parked vehicles happen constantly, and a license plate captured on a doorbell camera is often all the police need to knock on your door a week later. Cases are filed in the Riverside Hall of Justice, the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta, the San Bernardino Justice Center, the Rancho Cucamonga and Fontana courthouses, and the Long Beach, Torrance, Van Nuys, and Pomona courthouses every week. This guide explains what the prosecutor has to prove, what defenses actually succeed, and what a conviction does to your license, insurance, and record.

What the Prosecutor Must Prove for Misdemeanor Hit and Run (Vehicle Code 20002)

The elements. To convict under Vehicle Code section 20002, the prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that (1) while driving, you were involved in a vehicle accident; (2) the accident caused damage to someone else's property; (3) you knew you had been involved in an accident that caused property damage, or knew from the nature of the accident that it was probable property had been damaged; and (4) you willfully failed to perform one of the duties the statute imposes. Those duties are to stop immediately at the scene, and either locate the owner of the damaged property and provide your name and address, along with the registration number of the vehicle and, on request, your license, or, if the owner cannot be found, leave a written note in a conspicuous place with that information and the circumstances, and then notify the local police or the Highway Patrol without unnecessary delay. The standard jury instruction is CALCRIM 2150.

The knowledge element is where cases are won. The prosecutor does not have to prove you caused the collision or that you were at fault. The prosecutor does have to prove you knew, or reasonably should have known from the nature of the impact, that a collision with damage had occurred. A light tap at two miles per hour in a crowded Costco parking lot in Corona, felt through a truck with a lift kit and a loud stereo, is a very different case from a sideswipe at 45 miles per hour on the 91 that leaves a mirror in the road. Jurors decide knowledge from the physics of the impact, the damage to your own car, and what you did afterward.

Parked cars count. Section 20002 expressly covers accidents involving parked vehicles. Backing into a parked car in a Fontana apartment complex and driving off without leaving a note is the most common misdemeanor hit and run fact pattern in the Inland Empire, and it is usually solved by a witness who wrote down a plate or a security camera.

What the Prosecutor Must Prove for Felony Hit and Run (Vehicle Code 20001)

The elements. To convict under Vehicle Code section 20001, the prosecutor must prove that (1) while driving, you were involved in a vehicle accident; (2) the accident caused injury to, or the death of, someone other than yourself; (3) you knew you had been involved in an accident that injured another person, or knew from the nature of the accident that it was probable another person had been injured; and (4) you willfully failed to perform one of the duties required by Vehicle Code section 20003 and Vehicle Code section 20004. Those duties are to stop immediately at the scene, give your name, address, vehicle registration, and the name and address of the owner to the injured person and to any peace officer at the scene, show your license on request, render reasonable assistance to anyone injured, including arranging transportation for medical treatment when it is apparent that treatment is necessary, and, if someone died and no officer is present, report the accident to the nearest police or Highway Patrol office without delay. The standard instruction is CALCRIM 2140.

Knowledge of injury can be constructive. The California Supreme Court held in People v. Holford (1965) 63 Cal.2d 74 that the knowledge element of section 20001 is satisfied when the driver knew of the accident and knew, or should reasonably have known from the nature of the accident, that someone was injured, so a driver cannot avoid liability by refusing to look. The Court of Appeal in People v. Harbert (2009) 170 Cal.App.4th 42 applied that rule to a driver who claimed not to have known he struck a person rather than an object, holding that a jury may infer knowledge of injury from the severity of the impact and the surrounding circumstances. In practice, the more violent the collision, the harder it is to argue you did not realize someone might be hurt.

Fault is not an element. A driver who is completely blameless, whose car was struck by a pedestrian who ran into the street, can still be convicted of felony hit and run for leaving. In People v. Carbajal (1995) 10 Cal.4th 1114, the California Supreme Court explained that the statute punishes the flight, not the accident, and upheld a restitution condition on probation for a section 20002 defendant even though he was not at fault for the collision itself. Prosecutors cite Carbajal to argue for restitution in nearly every hit and run case.

Is Hit and Run a Misdemeanor or a Felony?

Property damage only: misdemeanor. A violation of Vehicle Code section 20002 is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both. Most first-time property damage cases in Riverside and San Bernardino County are resolved without any custody time, and many are resolved without a conviction at all through the civil compromise procedure discussed below.

Injury: a wobbler. A violation of Vehicle Code section 20001 involving injury is a wobbler. Filed as a misdemeanor, it carries up to one year in county jail. Filed as a felony, it carries a state prison term of 16 months, two years, or three years. When the accident results in death or permanent, serious injury, the felony range increases to two, three, or four years. The prosecutor decides how to file based on the severity of the injuries, the driver's record, whether alcohol was involved, and how far the driver went to avoid detection, and a felony filing can later be reduced to a misdemeanor under Penal Code section 17, subdivision (b), at sentencing or after probation.

Flight after a deadly crash. Section 20001 also contains a separate provision adding a consecutive five-year term for a driver who flees the scene after committing vehicular manslaughter under Penal Code section 191.5 or Penal Code section 192, subdivision (c). These cases are almost always filed as felonies and often alongside DUI charges under Vehicle Code section 23153.

Defenses to Hit and Run Charges in California

You did not know there was an accident. This is the most common and most effective defense in property damage cases. If the contact was so slight that a reasonable driver would not have noticed it, the knowledge element fails. Evidence that matters includes the absence of damage to your own vehicle, the noise level and road conditions, dash camera footage, and expert testimony about what an impact of that size would feel like from the driver's seat. Do not try to explain this to the police yourself; talking your way out of it usually supplies the knowledge admission the prosecutor was missing.

You were not the driver. Hit and run cases frequently begin with a plate number and a registered owner. The registered owner is not necessarily the driver. If the car was borrowed, shared, or stolen, the prosecutor must prove identity beyond a reasonable doubt, and a plate alone does not do that. Officers know this, which is why the first thing they do is come to your house and ask who was driving. Understanding your rights when questioned before that knock is worth more than any argument a lawyer can make afterward.

Only your own property was damaged. Section 20002 requires damage to property belonging to someone else. If you hit a curb, a tree on your own lot, or your own parked second car, there is no hit and run. Similarly, if the only person injured was you, section 20001 does not apply.

You stopped and complied, or tried to. Leaving a note with your name, address, and a description of what happened, then reporting to the police, satisfies section 20002 even if the note blew away. Stopping, exchanging information, and leaving before the police arrived is not a hit and run when no one was injured. In an injury case, leaving to get help, call 911 from a place with reception, or move a vehicle out of a dangerous freeway lane before returning can negate the willfulness element, provided you actually returned.

Duress or a safety emergency. A driver who leaves because the other party is threatening violence, or because a crowd is forming in a dangerous way, can argue that leaving was not a willful failure to comply, particularly if the driver reported the collision to police immediately afterward. This is fact-specific, and the strength of the defense depends on how quickly the report was made.

Civil Compromise: How Many Property Damage Cases Are Dismissed

The procedure. Under Penal Code section 1377 and Penal Code section 1378, a misdemeanor for which the injured party has a civil remedy can be dismissed if the injured party appears in court, or files a written acknowledgment, stating that they have been fully compensated and consent to the dismissal. Misdemeanor hit and run under section 20002 is a classic civil compromise case: the driver or their insurer pays the repair cost, the property owner signs the acknowledgment, and the judge dismisses the charge over the prosecutor's objection, if any. The dismissal is a bar to future prosecution for the same offense.

What it takes in practice. The defense obtains a repair estimate, arranges payment, and gets a signed declaration from the property owner. Judges in Riverside and San Bernardino County routinely grant these motions in first-offense parking lot cases, and some prosecutors will simply agree to dismiss once restitution is confirmed. Civil compromise is not available for injury cases under section 20001, for cases where the conduct also violates another statute the prosecutor is pursuing, or where the victim refuses to cooperate, and it is not automatic; the judge retains discretion.

Misdemeanor diversion. Where civil compromise is unavailable, misdemeanor diversion under Penal Code section 1001.95 allows a judge to divert a misdemeanor hit and run over the prosecutor's objection, with dismissal on completion of the conditions, which typically include restitution. Hit and run is not one of the offenses the statute excludes, unlike DUI, which is barred from diversion by Vehicle Code section 23640. If the case is dismissed after diversion, the arrest is treated as though it never occurred for most purposes, and the record can be sealed.

Collateral Consequences of a Hit and Run Conviction

Driver's license and DMV points. A conviction under section 20001 or 20002 adds two points to your DMV record under Vehicle Code section 12810, the same as a DUI or reckless driving, and points trigger negligent operator suspension proceedings when they accumulate. A felony section 20001 conviction can also lead to a license revocation. Separately, under Vehicle Code section 16000, any accident involving injury, death, or property damage above the statutory threshold must be reported to the DMV on form SR 1 within ten days regardless of fault, and failing to do so can lead to a separate suspension. Confirm the current damage threshold on the DMV's website.

Insurance. Hit and run is treated as an at-fault event by most insurers, and a conviction, or even a claim, commonly produces a premium increase or non-renewal. If you leave the scene, your own collision coverage may also be contested.

Immigration. A misdemeanor property damage hit and run is generally not treated as a crime involving moral turpitude, but the answer for felony injury hit and run is less settled and depends on the sentence and the record of conviction. Under Penal Code section 1016.3, defense counsel must advise a noncitizen client about immigration consequences before a plea, and the prosecutor must consider them in negotiations, so raise your status with your lawyer at the first meeting.

Professional licenses and employment. A felony conviction must be reported to most California licensing boards, and commercial drivers face separate consequences under the federal and state commercial licensing rules. A misdemeanor hit and run conviction can be dismissed after probation under Penal Code section 1203.4 using form CR-180, as explained in our guide to expunging a criminal record.

Restitution. Under Penal Code section 1202.4, the court orders restitution to any victim who suffered economic loss as a result of the offense, and under People v. Carbajal a court may impose restitution for the collision damage as a condition of probation even where the driver was not at fault. Expect restitution to be part of any resolution.

What to Do If You Think You Left the Scene of an Accident

Do not call the police to explain. Many people, realizing the next morning that they may have hit something, call the police or drive to the station to explain. That call becomes the prosecution's proof of the knowledge element and of identity. Call a lawyer first. A lawyer can, in appropriate cases, report the collision on your behalf, provide your insurance information, and begin the restitution and civil compromise process without you giving a statement.

Preserve your evidence. Photograph your own vehicle before any repair, save dash camera and phone location data, and write down for your lawyer, not for the police, exactly what you remember about the road, the lighting, the noise, and the impact. If you had passengers, get their names to your lawyer. Do not repair the car until your lawyer says so, because the absence of damage is evidence.

Do not contact the other party. Well-meaning apologies get quoted in police reports. If restitution is going to be paid, your lawyer or your insurer will handle the contact in a way that protects you and, where possible, sets up a civil compromise.

Understand how the case will move. In a misdemeanor case, you will typically be mailed a notice to appear or cited rather than arrested, and your lawyer can often appear for you under Penal Code section 977. In a felony injury case, expect an arrest or a warrant, a bail hearing, an arraignment, and a preliminary hearing. Our guide to what happens after you are charged walks through each stage, and what makes a criminal case weak explains how identity and knowledge problems get exploited.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is hit and run a felony in California?

Only when someone is injured or killed, and even then it is a wobbler. Hit and run involving property damage alone is a misdemeanor under Vehicle Code section 20002. Hit and run involving injury or death is charged under Vehicle Code section 20001 and can be filed as either a misdemeanor or a felony depending on the injuries, the driver's record, and the circumstances of the flight.

Can I be convicted of hit and run if the accident was not my fault?

Yes. Fault is not an element of either statute. The crime is failing to stop, identify yourself, and render aid, and the California Supreme Court confirmed in People v. Carbajal (1995) 10 Cal.4th 1114 that the statute punishes the flight rather than the collision. A blameless driver who leaves can be convicted, although fault matters a great deal at sentencing and in restitution disputes.

What if I did not know I hit anything?

Then you are not guilty, because knowledge is an element. The prosecutor must prove you knew, or should reasonably have known from the nature of the accident, that a collision causing damage or injury occurred. Slight contact in a parking lot with no damage to your own vehicle is the strongest version of this defense. Do not give a statement to police about what you felt or noticed until you have spoken with a lawyer, because those statements are what prosecutors use to prove knowledge.

Can a hit and run charge be dismissed if I pay for the damage?

Often, yes, in property damage cases. Under Penal Code section 1377 and Penal Code section 1378, a misdemeanor hit and run can be dismissed through civil compromise when the property owner confirms in court or in writing that they have been fully compensated and consent to the dismissal. Misdemeanor diversion under Penal Code section 1001.95 is a second route to dismissal. Neither is available for injury cases under section 20001.

How long does the DA have to file hit and run charges?

One year for a misdemeanor and three years for a felony, as a general rule. Under Penal Code section 802, most misdemeanors must be filed within one year of the offense, and under Penal Code section 801, most felonies must be filed within three years. Police investigations that begin with a plate number often take weeks, so a letter or a visit from an officer a month after the collision is common.

Will a hit and run conviction affect my license?

Yes. A conviction under either section adds two points to your DMV record under Vehicle Code section 12810, and a felony injury conviction can lead to revocation. Separately, the DMV requires an SR 1 accident report within ten days under Vehicle Code section 16000 whenever there is injury or damage above the reporting threshold, regardless of fault.

Charged With Hit and Run in Southern California? Call Gramling Law Group

Gramling Law Group defends hit and run and traffic-related criminal cases in the Riverside Hall of Justice, the Southwest Justice Center, the San Bernardino Justice Center, the Rancho Cucamonga, Fontana, Long Beach, Torrance, Van Nuys, and Pomona courthouses, and criminal courts throughout the Inland Empire, Los Angeles County, Orange County, and Southern California. Daniel Gramling, Esq. offers flat-fee criminal defense and limited-scope options, including civil compromise and diversion motions in misdemeanor cases. Call (909) 654-4575 or contact us through this website for a consultation.

This article is educational and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. It addresses California law only.