Bicycle Austin forum

MichaelBluejay

Webmaster

From: Austin, TX

Registered: 2008-05-26

Posts: 1,466

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Hit-and-run driver who killed ped Stephanie Lunt (41) gets 4yrs (7/22)

Francisco Aviles, 65, was sentenced to 4 years and fined $350 for killing Stephanie Lunt in the 14000 block of FM 812 in Oct. 2020.

https://www.kxan.com/news/local/travis- … in-prison/

Hit-and-run resulting in death is a second-degree felony with a penalty of 2-20 years and up to $10,000.

Do you think this penalty was excessive, too lenient, or just right?

As I always say, regardless of prison or fine, anyone who kills someone with their vehicle ought to lose their license permanently.  Driving should be considered a privilege, not a right.  But it's not viewed that way.  The State will deprive someone of their liberty in general (imprisonment) before they'll deprive someone of their ability to drive.  That's sacred, they won't touch it.

RedFalcon

Member

Registered: 2013-10-10

Posts: 233

Re: Hit-and-run driver who killed ped Stephanie Lunt (41) gets 4yrs (7/22)

To me, the 'Run' part of the Hit and Run is why the maximum penalty should be given. I could be convinced that a crash was unintentional IF the driver stays on the scene. But when a driver runs away, that driver just checked out of the human race.

dougmc

Administrator

Registered: 2008-06-01

Posts: 631

Re: Hit-and-run driver who killed ped Stephanie Lunt (41) gets 4yrs (7/22)

I can't feel too much sympathy for somebody hits somebody else and leaves them for dead.

I mean, if they'd just stuck around, there'd probably be no criminal charges at all unless they're drunk.  And maybe they could have saved the person's life if they'd only tried to help.

The fact that they fled tells me that they were probably drunk, in which case they'd have lost any "it was just an accident" sympathy I might be able to muster.

So ... not an ideal sentence, but long enough to be a message to would-be hit-and-runners and drunk drivers.