Citizen’s jury shocked by judge’s verdict: ‘This is mild for killing a cyclist’

What kind of punishment would someone without legal knowledge impose on a driver who kills someone while using his cell phone and also driving too fast? In the new podcast Recht Doen, average citizens speak with judges about sensitive criminal cases. Because how can the court’s judgment sometimes deviate so much from society’s sense of justice? In episode 3, a carefully selected citizen jury considers a case from Vlaardingen. On May 29, 2023, a young driver drives towards an intersection where there are road works. He drives 50 kilometers per hour where only 30 is allowed. His phone is in the cup holder, notifications popping up. He looks, sometimes grabs the device and puts it back. A cyclist crosses in front of him. Visibility is limited due to fences and signs. Then things go wrong. The car collides hard with the cyclist. The victim sustains serious injuries: fractures to the jaw and wrist, internal bleeding. Two weeks later he died as a result of the accident. In court the question then turned was: how much of the driver’s fault was? Was he deliberately reckless, or was it ‘just’ inattention? What punishment will the citizen jury impose and how will a judge assess this case? You can subscribe via Apple Podcasts and Spotify for more episodes.

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