to find this really odd?

[5000candlesinthewind]

Earlier this week an elderly woman was knocked down in a car park hit and run. She died at the scene. At the time everyone in the area was furious and had absolutely no sympathy for the driver, in fact there was lots of really horrible comments about what they'd do to the driver if they found them.

Now its come out that the police have arrested a 65 year old woman in relation to the incident and everyone had changed course. Most people giving benefit of the doubt that it must have been an accident, maybe she panicked, perhaps she didn't notice.

Aibu to think this is really ageist? I personally can not understand how you could knock in to someone and kill them without noticing, and if you can do that then you shouldn't be driving.

Yanbu. Possibly sexist and ageist. 65 is not old at all, not even pension age and the vast majority of people are perfectly fit and well. If they are not they shouldn't be driving.

Leaving the scene is a terrible crime.

It does make some difference if she handed herself in or simply got caught.

Yes that does make a difference, I can understand panicking.

I still struggle to feel sympathy for her because she is an older female though. I guess it's just one of those things

I actually get really angry when I hear about older people causing accidents as they clearly are not fit to drive. However, that isn't that old. My Mum is 69 and is definitely still fit to drive.

Anyone who causes death by dangerous driving should be punished equally.

YANBU- thats terrible

I think it's perhaps not so much about her age etc, but now it's a real person figure rather than a non-specific person. People may also be seeing their mum/grandmum in that position.

However there may be a situation you don't know before you hate her.
I was witness to a (thankfully non-fatal) hit and nearly-run a couple of weeks back. He would have driven off if I hadn't topped him.
He was rushing to the hospital because he'd just had a phone call to say his wife was critical. He didn't know whether he'd be on time to see her. I suspect by the time he got away after all the paper work he wouldn't be.
Although both the other car involved and us who witnessed it started off pretty angry when he looked like he was driving off, our sympathy very quickly went out to him. He was just so focused on getting to the hospital that I don't think he'd totally clocked he'd hit another car and ended up wrapped round a streetlamp.*

*please if you're in that situation; get a taxi/neighbour. It may be very slightly slower, but he could have killed someone and he wasn't in a fit state to drive.

I don't know.

Where I live someone drove into a landmark, which then had to be demolished. People were furious. When it was revealed that the driver was a woman of a very similar age to the woman in the OP, people were even more cross - along the lines of "she should have known better".

I think it can go both ways.

In any case, "not noticing" killing someone means you shouldn't have been on the fucking road, whether the reason was medical, narcotic or anything else!

Regardless of age, a hit and run is still a hit and run. That poor ladys family that's 10 grand-children going without their grandmummy for Christmas. We were shopping the other side of the parkway when it happened- so sad :(

Exactly my thoughts Mummy. It's really shocked me tbh. We were there too but thankfully my kids didn't see any of it.

I just can't believe people making excuses for her. She drove away at speed ffs

YANBU at all.

25, 45 or 65. Killing someone and driving off is bloody scummy behaviour