California Vehicle Code 2800.2 addresses the grave offense of felony reckless evading. Commonly known as “felony evading police,” this offense involves fleeing law enforcement while driving a vehicle with a willful disregard for the safety of other people or property, a serious violation of the law.
In other words, you evade police in your car and drive it recklessly and dangerously while attempting to escape. In Los Angeles County, felony evasion is considered a serious criminal offense, and prosecutors vigorously pursue convictions.
If found guilty of VC 2800.2, the consequences are severe, including a mandatory minimum jail sentence. This underscores the critical importance of seeking immediate legal counsel if you're accused of felony reckless evading.
An example of felony evading includes a situation where someone carjacks a vehicle and attempts to get away from pursuing police officers by driving over 100 mph on the highway. The driver exits the highway and continues fleeing police on residential streets, where they run through several stop signs.
Eventually, police are able to stop the vehicle and arrest the driver. In this example, the driver could face felony reckless evading charges under Vehicle Code 2800.2, as they were clearly evading police with no regard for the safety of others or property.
If, during this same police pursuit, the driver caused serious bodily injury or death to another person, they would be charged with the related offense of “evading an officer causing injury or death,” in violation of California Vehicle Code 2800.3.
Despite the name 'felony reckless evading' under VC 2800.2, it's actually a 'wobbler,' a legal term in California. This means the offense can be charged as either a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on the circumstances and the defendant's criminal history. The Los Angeles County prosecutor has the discretion to file the case as either a misdemeanor or felony offense, which underscores the potential severity of the charge.
Their decision on how exactly to file Vehicle Code 2800.2 charges is normally based on any aggravating circumstances in the incident. Now that we have outlined a general overview of felony reckless evading charges, let's take a more thorough review of the legal definition, penalties, and defenses below.
Legal Definition of Felony Evading Police
Under California Vehicle Code 2800.2, felony reckless evading is legally defined as follows, providing you with a clear understanding of the offense:
- A person who flees or attempts to elude pursuing peace officers in a vehicle while driving in a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property. If convicted, they shall be punished by imprisonment for up to one year, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.
Under this legal definition, there are two distinct elements of the crime. First, you evaded police in a vehicle in violation of California Vehicle Code 2800.1. Next, while evading, you drove the vehicle with a willful disregard for the safety of others.
This means the police must have been pursuing you in their vehicle, and you willfully fled. In other words, you had a specific intent to evade police. The term “willfully” simply means you did it on purpose.
Elements of Felony Evading
Under California Vehicle Code 2800.2, there are specific elements of the crime that Los Angeles County must prove, beyond any reasonable doubt, to convict you. These include:
- A police officer in a vehicle was pursuing you in your vehicle;
- You willfully fled, or attempted to elude, the pursuing police vehicle;
- The police officer's car exhibited a visible red lamp that you saw or should have reasonably seen;
- A police officer drove the police officer's car in a distinctive uniform;
- The police officer's car was sounding its siren;
- The police officer's car was distinctively marked;
- You evaded the police in a vehicle with a willful and wanton disregard for the safety of persons and property.
As you can see above, a felony reckless evading charge in California requires that the police officer's vehicle have distinctive markings. This typically includes the name or seal of the police department on the outside of the vehicle, which excludes undercover police detectives in an unmarked car.
This requirement ensures that the driver is aware of the police presence and that their attempt to evade is intentional, thereby strengthening the case against the defendant.
What exactly does it mean to drive with a “willful or wanton disregard for safety?” A key element of the crime is the distinction between a simple misdemeanor case of evading police, which is covered under California Penal Code Section 2800.1.
In order to drive with a wanton disregard for safety, you were aware of the risk of harm, intentionally ignored the risk, and drove your vehicle in a manner that showed no regard for the safety of others, even if you didn't cause any damage. Call a Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer at our office if you have any questions.
Legal Penalties for Reckless Evading
As stated above, a violation of California Vehicle Code 2800.2, felony reckless evading, can actually be charged as either a misdemeanor or felony crime. The decision to charge as a misdemeanor or felony depends on the seriousness of the offense and your criminal history. A misdemeanor charge typically carries less severe penalties than a felony charge, which can result in a longer prison sentence and a larger fine.
It is worth noting that Los Angeles County prosecutors typically file VC 2800.2 as a felony offense. If you are convicted of a misdemeanor reckless evading charge, the legal penalties include:
- Minimum of 6 months and up to 1 year in the county jail,
- A fine up to $1,000,
- Misdemeanor summary probation.
If you are convicted of felony reckless evading as a felony crime, the legal penalties include:
- 16 months, 2 years, or 3 years in a California state prison,
- A fine of up to $10,000,
- Formal felony probation,
- 2 points on your DMV driving record.
It should be noted that regardless of whether you were convicted of reckless evading as a misdemeanor or felony offense, the judge will normally suspend your California driver's license as part of your probation.
If you are convicted of reckless evading in a commercial vehicle, your commercial driver's license will be suspended or even revoked.
What are Related Offenses?
- California Vehicle Code 2800.1 – Evading a Police Officer,
- California Vehicle Code 2800.3 – Evading Police Resulting in Injury or Death
Defenses for Felony Reckless Evading
Our Los Angeles criminal defense attorneys have a proven track record of success in defending clients accused of felony reckless evading. For example, in one case in Van Nuys Superior Court, our client was charged with felony evading police while driving under the influence (DUI).
Our law firm successfully secured the dismissal of the case following the preliminary hearing. However, the prosecutor decided to re-file the charges, seeking a prison commitment. After case negotiation and settlement discussions, our client received probation with no jail time.
There is a wide range of common legal defenses that our criminal lawyers can use to fight charges of felony reckless evading. Each case is unique and requires a close review of the details to determine the best strategy, but some of the potential legal defenses include the following:
- No intent to evade – Again, one of the main elements of the crime that the prosecutor has to prove is that you specifically intended to evade police. In certain situations, our lawyers might be able to cast some doubt on the alleged intent. For example, perhaps it was at night in a bad neighborhood, and the police officer's car was not distinctly marked. You were attempting to drive to a location with better lighting to get a better idea of what you thought might be a dangerous situation. In other words, you had no intent to evade the police. Another example would be a situation where you are faced with an emergency, such as taking an injured friend to the hospital.
- Insufficient evidence of reckless driving - In some cases, our attorneys might be able to argue that you didn't recklessly evade the police officer. We have seen cases where an aggressive prosecutor wants to turn a misdemeanor evading police into a felony case when there is insufficient evidence to prove that you were driving recklessly. We could demonstrate that your driving was not in a manner that posed a high risk to the safety of others. A conviction for felony reckless evading under California Vehicle Code 2800.2 can have life-altering consequences. We have successfully defended numerous evading cases and have developed effective strategies to achieve the best possible outcome for your case.
It may be possible to negotiate your case to a lesser offense or even be dismissed. Let our attorneys review the details to start planning your defense. Contact us at 877-781-1570.
Related Content:
If you have one phone call from jail, call us! If you are facing criminal charges,