Careless driving and infliction of injury or death on vulnerable road users; penalty
Va. Code Ann. § 46.2-816.1
in effectA. As used in this section, "vulnerable road user" means a pedestrian; the operator of or passenger on a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, wheel chair or wheel chair conveyance, skateboard, roller skates, motorized skateboard or scooter, or animal-drawn vehicle or any attached device; or any person riding an animal.
B. It is a Class 1 misdemeanor to operate a motor vehicle in a careless or distracted manner such that the careless or distracted operation is the proximate cause of serious bodily injury as defined in § 18.2-51.4 to or the death of a vulnerable road user who is lawfully present on the highway at the time of injury or death.
C. A prosecution or proceeding under § 46.2-852 is a bar to a prosecution or proceeding under this section for the same act, and a prosecution or proceeding under this section is a bar to a prosecution or proceeding under § 46.2-852 for the same act.
2020, c. 1259 ; 2022, cc. 506 , 507 .
Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/46.2-816.1/Fetched: 10/16/2026