AGO 98018.

CourtNebraska
Nebraska Attorney General Opinions 1998. AGO 98018. DATE: March 9, 1998SUBJECT: Eligibility for Compensation From the Crime Victim's Reparation Fund When a Person is Killed In a Motor Vehicle Accident, But the Operators of the Vehicles Involved are Not Charged With a Violation Specified in Neb. Rev. Stat. § 81-1822.REQUESTED BY: Allen Curtis, Director Nebraska Commission on Law Enforcement and Criminal JusticeWRITTEN BY: Don Stenberg, Attorney General Timothy J. Texel, Assistant Attorney General You have requested the opinion of this office regarding whether a claim submitted under the Crime Victim's Reparations Act, §§ 81- 1801 to 81-1841 (1994 and Cum. Supp. 1996) ("the Act") is eligible for compensation when the victim is killed as a result of an automobile accident, but the drivers of the vehicles involved in the accident causing the victim's death are not charged with a violation specified in Neb. Rev. Stat. § 81-1822. It is our opinion that when the driver or drivers of vehicles involved in a motor vehicle accident causing a person's death are not charged with a violation specified in Neb. Rev. Stat. § 81-1822(4), claims for compensation from injuries or death caused by the accident are not eligible for compensation under the Act. In your opinion request, you described the following factual background. You explained that On January 9, 1997, a vehicle driven by Kristopher Spencer was traveling southbound on southwest 56th street. Paul Childers was a passenger in the vehicle driven by Mr. Spencer. Mr. Spencer failed to stop at a stop sign at the intersection of southwest 56th and West Denton Road. Mr. Spencer's vehicle was struck on the passenger side by another vehicle traveling through the intersection. Mr. Childers died at the scene of the accident. The police report received by the Crime Commission included statements from the victim's wife that Mr. Spencer had been drinking before leaving the Childers' home. The firefighter who attended to Mr. Childers at the accident scene stated that he saw empty beer cans in the interior of the vehicle and could smell a strong odor of alcohol. The police report also included a copy of the Post Arrest Chemical Test Advisement for Mr. Spencer, stating that he was under arrest for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcoholic liquor or drugs. Evidently Mr. Spencer was...

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