Amanda Bynes pays in alleged hit-and-runs; cases dismissed

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Actress Amanda Bynes has escaped prosecution in two criminal cases involving alleged hit-and-runs after she paid civil settlements to the drivers. A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge this week dismissed the misdemeanor counts related to two hit-and-run incidents, in April and in August, after her attorney reached deals with the drivers she was accused of hitting.

Under California law, a judge can allow the civil settlement to resolve the criminal charges in misdemeanor cases. The actress had faced a possible sentence of six months in jail for each count if convicted.

L.A. prosecutors objected to the dismissal of charges, said Frank Mateljan, a spokesman for the city attorney’s office, noting that Bynes also has a pending case for driving without a license and driving under the influence.

Bynes still faces a driving under the influence charge stemming from an April 6 incident when she allegedly struck an L.A. County sheriff’s cruiser with her BMW. She was arrested about 3 a.m. near Robertson and Santa Monica boulevards in West Hollywood. Bynes denied the allegations. ‘I can’t help but laugh at all of you writing fake stories about me,’ she tweeted in May. ‘I was not in any hit and runs. I don’t drink so the DUI is false.’

Bynes is also charged with refusing a sobriety test.

Police said the actress was also involved in a minor traffic incident in May. More recently, she was charged with driving on a suspended license.

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