Virginia Reckless Driving Reduced

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Mary Ann. v. Commonwealth

Facts:

Defendant argued that the trial court erred in denying her proposed jury instruction that improper driving, an offense set forth in Va. Code Ann. § 46.2-869, was a lesser-included offense of reckless driving by speed. The appellate court disagreed. Improper driving was not a lesser-included offense of reckless driving by speed. Every commission of reckless driving by speed did not also constitute improper driving. In addition, improper driving was not composed entirely of the elements of reckless driving by speed. Improper driving required an additional finding of slight culpability, an element excluded from § 46.2-862. The plain and unambiguous reading of § 46.2-869 made clear that authority rested with the trial judge and not the jury to make the lesser degree of culpability determination. In the alternative, an attorney for the Commonwealth may have reduced a reckless driving charge to improper driving at any time before the court's decision. Thus, only the trial judge, or the prosecutor before the verdict was rendered, had the prerogative to reduce a reckless driving charge to improper driving under § 46.2-869..

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Holdings:

The Virginia Court made the following holding:

The improper driving statute, Va. Code Ann. § 46.2-862, states that the court in its discretion may reduce the reckless driving charge to improper driving where the degree of culpability is slight...

Virginia Reckless Driving Reduced

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