“It’s a tragedy. We feel like we’re sentenced to life imprisonment,” explain Guyaume’s parents. It was on June 6, 2022 that the 22-year-old man died in the town of Saint-Grégoire, north of Rennes. While riding his motorbike on Avenue de Couesnon around 6:30 p.m., the young man was hit head-on by a vehicle coming in the opposite direction. At the wheel of the car was a 74-year-old man. “He was speeding, drunk and had been without a license for 10 years,” emphasize Valérie and Bertrand Le Merrer, the victim’s parents. A tragedy that could have been avoided for the family. “Before the accident, this driver had already been arrested even though he no longer had a license. We knew he could be dangerous and despite everything, we let him have his car. This is why we denounce the inaction in the face of road violence.” The septuagenarian is due to be tried this Monday for involuntary manslaughter aggravated by two circumstances: driving under the influence of alcohol and driving without a license.
“Road homicide”
“Hearing “manslaughter” for the families affected by these tragedies is not bearable” explains the father “it is not something that happens due to bad luck. Driving while having consumed alcohol, for example, is a voluntary act. This is why we are in favor of the establishment of “road homicide” which highlights responsibility in the event of deliberate risky driving.” A bill concerning the creation of a “road homicide” was tabled on October 17, 2023 then adopted at first reading, on January 31, 2024 by the National Assembly and before the Senate on March 27, 2024. But this law was not could succeed due to the dissolution. “The bill is starting from scratch, and parliamentarians need to raise the subject again for it to finally succeed,” explains the family, who hopes that this new measure can move things forward. After gathering in the center of Saint-Grégoire, friends and relatives of the deceased young man went to the scene of the accident to lay flowers.
