In a city like Columbia, SC, home to a mix of college communities, government offices, and growing residential areas, fatal accidents can happen in a variety of settings, from traffic crashes on I-26 to incidents involving medical or workplace negligence.
When someone dies because of another’s actions, the grief is heavy, but what follows can feel even heavier as families face unfamiliar legal paths that look similar at first glance but carry different weight. A wrongful death lawsuit and a criminal homicide case both address loss, but they are not the same. One seeks accountability through the civil court, while the other involves the state prosecuting someone for a crime.
The confusion between the two grows quickly when families are dealing with shock and pain because each case runs on a different set of rules. One can move forward even if the other fails, which is why it helps to understand how they split and where they meet with the help of a Columbia, SC, wrongful death lawyer.
Key Differences in Legal Purpose
1. Criminal Homicide Case
- Brought by the state through a prosecutor
- Seeks to punish the offender with jail or prison
- Involves charges like murder or manslaughter
- Requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt
- The victim’s family may not have control over the case
2. Wrongful Death Lawsuit
- Filed by surviving family or estate
- Seeks money for loss of support and suffering
- Considers things like financial dependency and emotional impact
- Requires proof based on a preponderance of the evidence
- The family or estate leads the decision-making
The outcomes from these two paths do not always match because they rely on different standards and goals.
How the Two Can Overlap
Sometimes, the same death leads to both cases, which means one person could be prosecuted for homicide and sued for wrongful death in separate courts. You might see this when someone is acquitted in criminal court but still found responsible in civil court. These mixed outcomes can be hard to accept, but the legal systems do not always move in sync. In civil court, the focus stays on how someone’s actions led to preventable death and whether compensation should follow.
That is why working with a wrongful death lawyer can help families understand their rights clearly and avoid relying on a criminal case to bring closure or financial relief.
The Role of Evidence and Burden of Proof
In criminal cases, the prosecution must show no reasonable doubt about guilt, which makes the path narrow and difficult, especially when evidence is limited or contested. But in civil court, the goal is to prove it is more likely than not that someone’s actions caused the death. That lower threshold gives families a different chance to seek answers even when the state declines to prosecute or fails to convict.
This does not mean one case is easier or faster because both require preparation, support, and patience through a process that often feels cold during a time of loss.
Conclusion
Understanding how wrongful death lawsuits and criminal homicide cases differ gives families a better path forward when dealing with devastating loss because one focuses on punishment through the state while the other centers on recovery through civil claims. Both matter in different ways, and both offer tools to seek some form of justice when life has been taken unfairly.
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