Getting Answers And Justice After A Hit And Run Accident

Kelly Farmer was a memorable person to those who met him at work and to those who met him elsewhere.  He was an employee of the public works department of the City of Goose Creek, where he worked in the water operations section.  In his last two years working there, he held a supervisory role, where his resourcefulness and humility stood out to his coworkers.  A supervisor described him as “a sponge for knowledge.”  Outside of work, his passion was music, and he played the bass guitar in a band called Bullets Benign.  In April 2025, Farmer died an untimely death.  An SUV struck him while he was walking on Dorchester Road.  He was 46 years old.  The driver who struck Farmer fled the scene of the accident, and although South Carolina Highway Patrol found a Hyundai SUV that they believed was involved in the accident, the driver remains unidentified.  If you have suffered serious injuries in a car accident where the driver left the scene, contact a Columbia car accident lawyer.

Why Do Drivers Leave the Scene of the Accident?

South Carolina law requires drivers to stop and communicate with each other and with law enforcement after every car accident that involves bodily injuries or substantial property damage; every state has “fender bender” laws specifying the dollar amount of property damage at which an accident becomes significant enough to necessitate reporting it to the police.  Leaving the scene of an accident is a crime, and it is a felony if the accident involves serious bodily injury or death.  Drivers should stay at the scene of the accident at least until first responders arrive to attend to injured people.

People who cause an accident and leave the scene without waiting until injured people get medical attention know this.  Sometimes they simply drive away in a panic; they are afraid to see how serious the injuries are.  They are worried that, if someone in the struck vehicle dies, the at fault driver will get criminal charges for vehicular manslaughter.  In other cases, the fear that the consequences will be worse if they get caught in the moment than if, later, they must simply face charges for a hit and run.  For example, some hit and run drivers have illegal drugs or illegally obtained weapons in the car, and if they wait for police at the scene of the accident, police will discover this.

The Rights of People Injured in Hit and Run Accidents

If you get injured in a hit and run accident, you have the right to compensation for your accident-related financial losses, including but not limited to medical bills.  You might be able to accomplish this through a personal injury protection (PIP) claim if you have PIP insurance.  If you sue the at fault driver, you have a chance of winning your case regardless of whether the at fault driver gets convicted of hit and run in criminal court.

Let Us Help You Today

The personal injury lawyers at the Stanley Law Group can help you pursue a car accident claim where the driver left the scene of the accident.  Contact The Stanley Law Group in Columbia, South Carolina or call (803)799-4700 for a free initial consultation.

Sources:

counton2.com/news/troopers-find-vehicle-in-hit-and-run-that-killed-goose-creek-employee/

abcnews4.com/news/local/goose-creek-community-mourns-kelly-farmer-killed-in-hit-and-run-sunday-morning-wciv-abc-news-40-4-15-2025