Fatal accidents: practice of applying Art. 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

We are on Twitter:

Automotive news

Rules for the movement of heavy trucks in the automatic weight control zone have been adopted. The Federal Tax Service has approved the application form for the death or destruction of a vehicle. In Russia, it is forbidden to disembark children without a ticket from buses. A new sign 6.22 has been introduced in the traffic rules - “photo and video recording” Testing for alcohol dependence has been postponed for another year. The Ministry of Health has updated the requirements for completing car first-aid kits, the Ministry of Transport has approved the procedure and terms for storing diagnostic maintenance cards. Obtaining permission for international transport will now be done in a new way. You can now check your MTPL policy for authenticity online. The Central Bank has set new tariffs for MTPL.

/ Legal articles on the topic of automobile law / Criminal liability under Art. 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation / Fatal accidents - judicial practice

Fatal accidents - judicial practice

Unfortunately, in terms of the number of fatal road accidents, Russia is on the list of countries that hold a sad lead. Every year, a large number of people die in car accidents on the roads of our country.

However, as practice shows, the culprit of a fatal traffic accident is not always the person sitting behind the wheel.

Liability for a fatal accident - this is exactly what we will talk about in today's article on Autolegal.

How to act correctly at the scene of an accident so as not to aggravate the punishment?

If there was an emergency situation on the road and a person died in it, then the judge will issue a preventive measure to the culprit after some time. But this will not happen earlier than two or even three months after the day of the accident. The person who caused the tragedy on the road should know about some important nuances.

Firstly, if someone is hurt or injured as a result of an accident, then you need to immediately call an ambulance.
This must be done as a priority, because timely medical assistance can prevent the death of a seriously injured person. After calling the doctors, you need to call the police and insurance workers. Reference! If you neglect this rule, then during the trial the judge will apply not only a preventive measure related only to traffic violations, but also to criminal inaction.
And for this the punishment is more severe. Secondly, if as a result of an accident someone is hurt, injured or killed, under no circumstances should you drive away or leave the scene of the accident. It is important to remember that even if you become involved in an accident in which no one was injured, the driver will still be given a punishment, albeit an administrative one. It doesn’t matter who ran away or left the scene of the accident, the person’s license will still be confiscated or even taken into custody.

If the culprit of the accident realized that because of him there was an accident with the dead and quickly fled the scene of the crime, he will be put on the wanted list as a criminal, and when found, a more severe preventive measure will be imposed in court.

Actions at the scene of an accident and their impact on the further outcome of events

In any accident, the first step is to identify the victims. Provide first aid, call doctors, send accident victims to the hospital using passing transport. If calling an ambulance is impossible, there are no passing cars, take the victims to the hospital yourself, then return back. In the case of severe injuries, seconds count. We must clearly understand that timely provision of assistance can save a person’s life.

If a participant in an accident does not attempt to help the victims in a way available to him, the court will talk about criminal inaction. Liability is provided for under Art. 124 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, the maximum penalty is imprisonment for up to 4 years.

It happens that the driver, in the hope of avoiding responsibility for the accident, fled the scene and abandoned the victims. Such an act is classified as leaving one in danger.

The penalty is defined in Article 125 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - a fine of up to 80 thousand rubles, imprisonment for up to 1 year.

What will happen to the culprit?

A preventive measure for the culprit of an accident, which results in one or more deaths, is determined only if, after an investigation, it is proven that the death occurred precisely because of a collision of cars, and not because of a tragic combination of circumstances (for example, suddenly the blood clot came off).

Through a technical examination, it is determined whether the permissible speed was exceeded on a particular section of the road and whether the driver technically had the opportunity to avoid an emergency situation. If the result is negative, according to Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, he will not be held criminally liable. But he will be punished as a violator in accordance with Article 10.1 of the Traffic Rules, since under any circumstances he was obliged to do everything possible to reduce the speed, even stopping the vehicle.
According to Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, criminal liability is applicable only if the driver objectively had the opportunity to recognize the danger, as well as the technical ability to prevent an accident, but he did not do this, which resulted in consequences.
According to paragraph 2.1.2 of the Russian Federation Traffic Regulations, if the court decides that the fatal outcome is not only the fault of the person responsible for the accident, who violated the Russian Traffic Regulations, but also the victim himself (he was not wearing a seat belt, he was not wearing a helmet while riding a motorcycle, etc. .), then this is taken into account as a mitigating circumstance. The only exception is the situation when the culprit did not take action to ensure the safety of passengers.

Options for interpreting guilt

If during the investigation it is proven that the culprit had a premeditated intent to harm the victim, then the death will already be perceived as a murder committed with the help of a vehicle. The preventive measure in this case will be provided under the articles of the Special Part of the Criminal Code on crimes against the person.

Reference! For example, under Article 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation you can be imprisoned for 6 to 15 years.

But in practice, most often, a fatality resulting from an accident is interpreted as deprivation of life due to negligence. That is, when the accused had the opportunity to foresee the consequences, but he did not do so or did so, but not enough, due to criminal frivolity or negligence.

Driver's guilt and classification of crime

In the event of death due to an accident, the driver’s fault can only be in the form of negligence, since a pre-planned collision with a person is already regarded as intentionally causing death with the use of an instrument - a vehicle.

Also, for liability to arise, the driver’s fault in the accident must be proven: if a truck crashed into a car that did not violate traffic rules, the unbelted passenger of which died, then the blame for the death lies with the truck driver. No one is held responsible for the deceased driver who is responsible for the accident.

Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation directly stipulates that serious harm to health resulting in the death of a person through negligence is punishable. Indirect intent under the law can be in the form of recklessness or negligence.

To understand intent, here are examples of criminal traffic accidents in two situations:

If a person realized that he might not have time to complete the turn at the intersection before an oncoming car passed and would meet him, but at the same time he expected that he would have time to change gear and complete the maneuver, then there is criminal frivolity;
If the driver did not see a road sign and the lack of information about it led to an accident while performing a maneuver, then we are talking about criminal negligence, since the person, with due care, could and should have foreseen such an accident.

A person will only be liable if there is a causal link between the driver's actions and the victim's death. The death of a person must occur precisely due to the damage caused during the accident. Moreover, death may not occur immediately at the scene of the accident, but later.

If the death of the victim occurred minutes before the accident, for example, due to a heart attack, there is no cause-effect. Establishing these facts is possible only through a forensic medical examination.

Punishment under Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

If, as a result of the accident, a dead person or several persons are recorded, then the court will prosecute the culprit under Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation on violation of the rules of conduct on a public road and the use of motor vehicles.

If the guilty person was under the influence of alcoholic substances, then he will not be able to get off with a suspended sentence. The court will apply a more severe preventive measure.
If the death of only one person is recorded, the culprit may be sentenced to perform forced labor for up to 48 months, imprisoned for up to 60 months - part 3 of Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. And if the offender was drunk, then he can be put behind bars for up to 7 years - paragraph 4 of Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
If the accident results in two or more deaths, the perpetrator may be forced to perform forced labor for 60 months or imprisoned for a maximum of 7 years - paragraph 5 of Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. But if he was also drunk, then he could actually be imprisoned for 4 to 9 years - paragraph 6 of Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
In any situation, the culprit of a fatal accident, in addition to the main preventive measure, also receives an additional penalty - his rights are taken away for a period of six months to 36 months (this moment is described in Article 47 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
If the offender is under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident and has previously been administratively punished for this or even tried for driving drunk, then in addition to deprivation of his license for 36 months, he will be subject to an additional penalty depending on the situation: a fine sanction in the amount of 200-300 thousand rubles. (or in the amount of the total income of the perpetrator for 12 - 24 months) / performing compulsory labor for up to 480 hours / forced labor for up to 24 months / prison term for up to 24 months - paragraph 1 of Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Note! If the offender admitted that he was guilty, and the proceedings were carried out in a special manner, that is, without the involvement of witnesses, then the preventive measure appointed by the judge cannot be more than 2/3 of the longest sentence specified in the relevant article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Is it possible to reconcile the parties in cases of fatal road accidents?

Previously, until June 2021, when the entire Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation was classified as cases of minor or medium gravity, this was possible and such decisions were occasionally even made by the courts. However, in the summer of 2021, changes were made to the Criminal Code, according to which all “drunk” fatal accidents began to be classified as serious crimes, which does not allow even theoretical consideration of the issue of terminating the case after reconciliation of the parties.

As for the preventive measure chosen by investigators in cases of fatal accidents, most often it is a written undertaking not to leave the place, however, recently in such cases, detention (sometimes house arrest) has increasingly begun to be used, especially if it is We are talking about high-profile and sensational cases.

Extenuating circumstances

A mitigating sentence will be applied to the accused in the following cases:

If the crime was committed of moderate gravity through negligence and for the first time. The maximum penalty for this exceeds 3 years in prison.
If the accused has not yet reached the age of majority.
If the offender is the father of small children.
If the crime was committed as a result of official or financial dependence on a third party, as well as due to psychological coercion.
If the crime was committed in excess of the necessary defense action or the perpetrator carried out an order or instruction.
If the injured persons behaved immorally, which provoked the accident.
If the offender filed a confession and took measures that successfully helped the progress of the investigation or the search for the stolen property (that is, the culprit actively cooperated with the investigator).
If the culprit independently provided or tried to provide medical and other assistance before the arrival of doctors, and also if he voluntarily decided to compensate for material and moral damage to the relatives of the deceased.

All these circumstances are fully described in Article 62 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. It also states that if they exist, the court has the right to reduce the term of imprisonment, but at the same time it must independently take into account the circumstances of the accident on an individual basis, which can mitigate the guilt of the offender.

A suspended sentence is not a sign of the application of a mitigating circumstance in relation to the perpetrator of a fatal accident. He can be appointed if, according to the law, the period of stay in prison is expected to be less than 8 years and the court recognizes that a person can reform “at large.”

What liability may arise for an accident?

In the event of an accident, liability can arise in three types:

civil;
administrative;
criminal

The first occurs when material damage is caused to the victim. This could be damage to health, property, lost profits or income due to an accident.

If there are no victims or they cause minor or moderate harm to health, liability arises under the Code of the Russian Federation on Administrative Offences: a fine, deprivation of rights, arrest or compulsory labor.

If there was infliction of grievous bodily harm or death of citizens, then criminal liability arises, provided for in Article 246 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. It does not matter what kind of road participant the victim was - a pedestrian, a passenger or another driver.

Aggravating circumstances

Circumstances that have a negative impact on the car owner who caused the accident, that is, aggravate his guilt, in which two or more people lost their lives, are regulated by Article 63 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. These include:

Intentional murder (Recidivism).
Drunk driving accidents and deaths are taken into account first.
Particularly active role in a criminal event, etc.

The judicial authority has every right to recognize as aggravating any actions that are proven as a result of the preliminary investigation and discredit the perpetrator (taking narcotic, psychotropic substances, etc.).

Accident near Syzran

Ninth place in the ranking of the worst accidents goes to the tragic story that happened on the M-5 highway near Syzran. Due to poor road conditions, a car moving at high speed flew off the road.

As a result, the driver and passengers died. The victims were the family of the chief of police of the Samara region. The man died on the spot, his wife and children fought for their lives in the hospital, but they could not be saved.

Reconciliation with the injured party

If during the trial the crime committed is considered in terms of severity to be minor or medium, which the culprit committed for the first time, then, according to Article 76 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, reconciliation between the victim and the guilty party will become possible.

Of course, it will no longer be possible to pay anything to a person who died as a result of an accident. But he will be represented by his close relatives or guardians. If the injured party files a motion to dismiss the case due to reconciliation, the case is immediately closed.

However, termination of a criminal case for reconciliation of two parties in accordance with Article 25 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation is only a right, and not an obligation of the court. Along with this, he must pay full attention to:

The social danger of the crime committed.
Personal information about the culprit of the accident.
The fact of exerting pressure on the injured party.
What measures did the offender take to make amends for the damage caused, etc.

Reference! We must not forget that the family of the deceased is guaranteed to receive payments under compulsory motor liability insurance and the culprit does not need to do anything of his own free will for this. In Article 7 of the current edition of Federal Law No. 40-FZ dated April 25, 2002 “On compulsory motor liability insurance for car owners”, the insurance company under the compulsory motor liability insurance policy can make the maximum payment as compensation for damage caused:

500 thousand rubles. for each victim - if their health or life was affected.
400 thousand rubles. for each victim - if property is damaged.

You cannot drive a car while drunk. Even if the irreversible happens and a person becomes guilty of the death of another person, he will have a chance not to go to prison, but to remain free. And if he is under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident, then he will not see “freedom” for at least 2 years. Moreover, even if there is a whole list of circumstances that can mitigate the punishment.

Terrible accident in Kuban

Seventh place went to a terrible accident that occurred in the Krasnodar region, not far from Kuban. This time the accident involved an ambulance crew and a passenger car. The ambulance was moving with doctors and a patient in the back, unfortunately, none of them survived, having received serious injuries.

The incident occurred due to a head-on collision between 2 cars. The ambulance crew was in a hurry to take the man to the hospital, but due to the carelessness of the driver of the car, such an unpleasant situation occurred. The passengers of the car survived and were immediately taken to the hospital. Six participants in the accident died on the spot.

Leaving the scene of an accident

The State Traffic Safety Inspectorate often encounters cases where the culprit of an accident on the road escapes from the scene of the crime. Most often this happens when you hit a person who is crossing the road or drive a car while drunk.

Reference! For fleeing the scene of an accident, only administrative liability is applied. This is indicated in part 2 of article No. 12.27 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.

But if in such a case there are injuries or deaths, the court will take this into account as an aggravating circumstance, unless, of course, in the future the culprit comes to confess to the law enforcement agency.

Road accident in Yaroslavl

Tenth place goes to a traffic accident that occurred in the city of Yaroslavl. The BMW driver lost control at high speed. Due to the snowy side of the road, the car's wheels were unable to move onto the road.

As it turned out later, death occurred instantly due to a strong blow to a road pole. The worst thing is that the driver was not alone, but was carrying 2 passengers with him. Fortunately, they escaped with broken bones and were immediately taken by ambulance to the hospital.

Fatal accidents, liability and punishment