Caused, But Not Involved In, Accident
Question
I became aware that I indirectly caused a major accident today without actually being involved. I was on the freeway when I realized I was missing my exit and I rapidly served into the exit lane. The car behind me served to avoid hitting me. In a chain reaction, several other cars collided, and it tied up traffic for over an hour. I later saw it on the news. There were no fatalities. Legally, I am not responsible because my vehicle did not collide with anyone else’s. And there is no way for the authorities to track me down. But this crash caused monetary to several others and thousands of other people to sit through traffic, having possibly harmful effects on their lives I wouldn’t even know. This is all because of my decision to voice-text behind the wheel, which is legal to do, which caused me to lose focus of the road and nearly overshoot my exit and make this erratic move. I do it all the time and never realized this danger. Do I have any obligation to come forward to anyone?