If you or a loved one has been charged with vehicular homicide in Georgia, you need a lawyer that will literally do everything possible in defense of the case.  Vehicular homicide is one of the most serious offenses that can be committed in a motor vehicle in Georgia. 

Georgia law provides for both misdemeanor and felony vehicular homicide charges.  While misdemeanor and felony vehicular homicide charges vary greatly in terms of the punishment a person convicted may face, both misdemeanor and felony vehicular homicide charges are very serious.  A felony vehicular homicide charge in Georgia, which under Georgia law is called homicide by vehicle in the first degree, requires a jail term of not less than 3 years and may be punished by up to 15 years in custody.

Whether a vehicular homicide charge is a felony is determined by whether the defendant caused the death of a person by a violation of a certain group of what are called predicate offenses.  Typically, people are charged with felony vehicular homicide when they cause the death of another person and it is alleged that the driver being under the influence caused the death.  Every person charged with felony vehicular homicide must recognize that defeating the DUI portion of the felony vehicular homicide charge is critical, and having an attorney that effectively knows how to attack both the admissibility and substantive aspects of the state-administered chemical test, typically a blood test, is crucial.  In addition, detailed analysis of the accident and the cause of the death must be performed in each of these cases.  Particularly, if a person hopes to overcome the charge of vehicular homicide by reckless driving - reckless driving is another predicate offense under Georgia's vehicular homicide statute.  

A particularly harsh provision of Georgia vehicular law states that a person who, after being declared a habitual violator and while their license is still in revocation, causes the death of another person shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than 5 years nor more than 20 years.  The sentence for a person convicted under the habitual violator provision of Georgia's vehicular homicide law may have their sentence suspended or probated after the person has served at least 1 year in custody. 

If a person is charged with causing the death of a person, but the driver did not commit one of the predicate offenses to felony vehicular homicide in causing the death, the driver may be charged with misdemeanor vehicular homicide.  Misdemeanor vehicular homicide may be punished by up to 1 year in custody.

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