The Ibiza judge has exonerated the driver who collided with the pilot’s quad after concluding that the accident was fatal because Nieto had his head unprotected
“It is perfectly possible, and so many experts assert, that the helmet can be detached at the time of the collision or in a first impact.” This is the main argument of the appeal presented by the family of Angel Nietoto which OPEN CASE has agreed, against the decision of the judge who has just archive accident investigation for which the pilot died in 2017.
The magistrate of the 2nd investigative court of Ibiza dismissed the case last month after concluding that the German driver who crashed her car from behind into Nieto’s quad when leaving a roundabout did not commit no serious imprudence.
‘chichonera’ type helmet
The instructor attributes the death of Nieto, who died as a result of a head traumato the fact that the pilot was carrying helmet unfastened at the time of the collision, as several witnesses testified: “the impact, as it occurred directly on the head free of protectionmust have caused, according to the rules of experience, a substantially more relevant damage than that which would have occurred if it had been cushioned by the properly placed helmet, an obligation of the quad driver”.
But Ángel Nieto’s children and first wife do not agree with his conclusions and raise other hypotheses in their appeal: “The type of helmet used by Mr. Nieto, approved but commonly known as ‘chichonera’ and which is fastened by means of straps that are adjusted according to the needs of the individual, it has excess in said straps that once fastened can flap in the wind despite wearing it fastened“.
rear blow
According to his approach, “the same rear blow that usually causes the well-known whiplash on the driver of a car, could even cause Nieto’s helmet to be projected or the latch mechanism failed“.
The judge determined that the driver who hit the pilot’s quad, and who has been investigated for reckless homicide and defended by the lawyer Jaime Campaner, was traveling at a “low speed, between 22 and 32 kilometers per hour” at the time of the collision, according to the investigation. In addition, he ruled out that she committed any negligence or distraction.
In her filing order, the magistrate establishes that the woman committed, in any case, a “mild recklessness”by not keeping the necessary safety distance to react to an eventual harsh braking of whoever was circulating in front”.
The driver who hit Nieto’s quad leaves the court with her lawyer, Jaime Campaner.
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“He was driving carelessly”
The family of the 12+1 world motorcycling champion points out, on the contrary, that “it is unquestionable that the driver was driving absolutely negligent. Does not exist a single footprint or vestige on the road that proves that the woman tried to avoid the collision by braking or evasive maneuver, she simply hit him while driving behind him because she did not see him. And this circumstance requires a repeated and constant inattention in driving that must be equated to negligent driving classified as serious misconduct“.
They blame the judge for “omitting a particularly relevant piece of information in her resolution, such as the fact that the person under investigation was driving behind a special vehicle (quad), in which the driver is located.” absolutely unprotected in the event of a rear-end collision, in the same way as if you were riding a bicycle or motorcycle.
For this reason, the pilot’s family maintains, “the driver should have taken extreme measures and adopted the most basic safety measures, both in relation to distance, overtaking, or in terms of driving and braking to avoid the accident. scope”.
“Unforgivable inattention”
In their appeal to the judge, they criticize that it seems that “the judge places more emphasis on the circumstance that the helmet could be unfastened, as if that were the real reason for the accidentthat in the fault of the driver who overtook and hit the quad driven by Mr. Nieto with her vehicle, on the occasion of a unforgivable inattention“.
Ángel Nieto’s family regrets that “the judge’s reasoning lacks even the slightest mention of the fact that the driver of the Fiat I should have taken extreme caution by the type of special vehicle that preceded it. Understanding the opposite means sending society a message of trivialization and carelessness in driving when driving near bicycles, motorcycles or quads”.
In his opinion, “understanding the facts prosecuted as irrelevant from a criminal point of view means sending a misleading message to society, absolute impunity in behaviors such as the one in question and absolutely contrary to current social conscience”.