The New York Police Department is trying to separate fact from fiction in the newest Lindsay Lohan scandal, in which a young man alleges the actress hit him with her car in Chelsea, according to a report by local TV station WABC.
"She strikes the individual with the car, who was an employee of the Dream Hotel, injuring his leg," NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly said, according to the news source. "She then leaves the scene."
Footage from surveillance cameras outside the hotel, however, shows that the victim may not have been hit at all. According to WABC, detectives said the video does not support the prosecutor's claim.
Lohan, who is still on probation from a jewelry theft from last year, was arrested and charged with fleeing the scene of an accident, but detectives noted that the actress did not appear drunk and was not given a breathalyzer test, WABC said.
Either way, the incident may be enough to earn a violation of probation, the news source reported.
"Whenever you have actions that either are law breaking or violating moral ethics, then you're going to have a situation where you can lose your probation and end up in jail, end up with extended probation or end up with a separate sentence," trial attorney Herb Subin said, according to WABC.
Hit and runs are a serious crime in the United States that appear to be happening more frequently. According to a report by accident injury attorneys Greenman Goldberg Raby Martinez, hit and run accidents have increased 15 percent since 2000.
By deploying surveillance cameras outside a business in public areas, decision-makers may be able to help local law enforcement officers investigating crimes determine who is the guilty party.