A 57-year-old man who caused a fatal accident in Bergeijk in September 2023 was sentenced on Monday to a 240-hour community service. The driver had four beer when he hit a 69-year-old cyclist at the intersection on the Fressevenweg. The cyclist died of his injuries that same evening.
The man committed several traffic violations on 25 September. He drank the permitted amount of alcohol twice and did not reduce the intersection when approaching the intersection. In addition, he did not give priority to the cyclist coming from the right.
“The sun was right in my face. It is a dangerous crossing,” the man said two weeks ago in the courtroom of Den Bosch. That is precisely why he should have been extra careful, the judge thinks.
According to his own words, the driver only saw the victim when it was too late. “I didn’t see any movement from the right, so I just let go of the gas and not inhibit.” Two motorists who drove behind the man stated that they saw the cyclist arriving well in time.
Heavily struck
The court believes that the man was careless and inattentive, but sees that he himself was also struck by what he has done. He is struggling with a post -traumatic stress disorder and has come into social isolation.
According to the judge, he is guilty and takes his responsibility. Shortly after the accident, he and his family contacted the relatives of the victim. He also stopped drinking alcohol.
Prison sentence
Yet, unlike the public prosecutor, the court sees reason to impose a six -month prison sentence. Completely conditional, as a stick behind the door. The judge takes into account that the man has high financial burdens because he has to pay a damage of 55,000 euros to the insurer.
He also receives fewer assignments for his one -man company after the accident. “Without a driver’s license, the man has no income and the financial consequences for him and his family are even greater,” the court states in the verdict. The man therefore gets a conditional driving denial of two years.