European Legislative Models on the Criminalization of Leaving the Scene of a Road Accident

Abstract

The experience of European countries in regulating the criminalization of various criminal acts has undoubtedly been a benchmark for developing countries, a fact that is also specific for the Republic of Moldova. Given that the crime of leaving the scene of a road accident is regulated by most European Union states, the present study will focus on the analysis of the rules that apply in this matter, drawing a parallel with those provided for in art. 266 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Moldova. The planned study will also refer to some doctrinal opinions expressed by the European doctrine when examining the content of the rules in the field of criminalizing the act of leaving the scene of a road accident. The initial findings from the study of the national norm that sanctions leaving the scene of a road accident indicate some regulatory confusion, where the qualification of the act requires the necessary presence of guilt of the person who committed the road accident, which means that in the absence of guilt for the accident, the person who leaves the scene of the act does not fall under the scope of this norm, an unacceptable fact in the context in which the legislator requires remaining at the scene for reasons other than the guilt of the driver involved in the accident. For greater efficiency in research, widely known methods are applied such as: the analysis method, the synthesis method, the comparative method and the deduction method. UDC: [343.346:061.1EU]:343.34(478); JEL: K14, K42, K19