A camera can be the difference between peace of mind and frustration. In a prime example of a well-placed camera doing its job perfectly, footage captured a California Highway Patrol police vehicle reversing into a parked SUV. 

A security camera shows a highway patrol officer backing into a Chevrolet SUV hard enough to shake it on its wheels and tires

A social media video captured several parked cars and the top of a utility van. The poster suggested that one of the neighborhood’s residents had requested to see security camera footage to get to the bottom of who had crashed into their parked vehicle, a white Chevrolet Tahoe SUV.

If the label rings true, that means the vehicle responsible for hitting the parked Chevy SUV fled the scene. That’s a serious allegation. But it’s especially problematic given the footage. The camera showed a California Highway Patrol Ford Police Interceptor SUV reversing down a driveway. A moment later, the Interceptor SUV hits the Tahoe, shaking it back and forth on its tires.

The highway patrol officer then shifts into drive and pulls the SUV back up onto the driveway. Of course, as with just about anything, the incident started arguments online. For starters, the video’s poster captioned the footage “hit and run, leaving the scene, and failure to report an accident.” However, the footage doesn’t show the highway patrol vehicle leaving the scene. 

As such, the only evidence here suggesting that the police officer was in a hit-and-run is the caption on the video. It is, of course, protocol for the cop to stop, document, and report the incident. If the officer really did flee the scene, that’s a serious offense. It’s a misdemeanor crime in California to hit a parked car and leave the scene without providing information.

Again, though, the video footage stops as the police vehicle pulls forward after hitting the Chevy SUV. You can take a look at the video for yourself below!