According to the judge, a 59-year-old man from De Punt caused a serious traffic accident on the N34 near Gasselte, but he could not do anything about it. The man became unwell during the ride, as a result of which his van ended up on the wrong side of the road. The bus collided with an oncoming car.
The Public Prosecution Service (OM) demanded a community service of 100 hours two weeks ago. According to the prosecutor, it had not been sufficiently established that the man had indeed become unwell just before the collision. Doctors subsequently examined the man for this, but a concrete cause was not found. The Public Prosecution Service found the man guilty of this accident.
The judge sees this differently. The man from De Punt stated that he was on his way to work in Assen in May 2020. Shortly after Borger, he wasn’t feeling well and paused. He felt fit again to continue on his way. At Gasselte, the man felt a stinging and warm feeling in his stomach. He did not notice that his car was driving on the wrong side of the road unnoticed. The man said that at that moment ‘he had lost his light’. He didn’t notice the accident.
The judge finds the explanation of the man from De Punt credible. This statement is also supported by a truck driver who witnessed the accident up close. He saw that the van swerved and at that moment made eye contact with the driver. The truck driver saw an absent look in the other man’s eyes. Immediately after the accident, the driver of the van said he felt unwell while driving.
According to the judge, all this fits in with the possibility that the man from De Punt had become unwell. As a result, he cannot be blamed for this accident. Research also does not show that he was busy with other things while driving, such as on his phone. The devastation after the collision was extensive. The van was tilted on the road surface, the other car was upside down. Both the man from De Punt and the oncoming vehicle were seriously injured in the accident.