he runs over a man in the parking lot of a supermarket, “I didn’t see it” he assures

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The audience of criminal court of Cahors of Thursday November 14, 2024 did not make it possible to remove the mystery about this manslaughter occurred on May 9, 2023 in the parking lot of a supermarket in Souillac. “Factually, what happened seems simple. But the reasons remain mysterious…” explains the judge-rapporteur before getting to the heart of the matter.

He did not see the pedestrian

On May 9, 2023, A., a cabinetmaker of British origin living in France since 2005, went to Lidl supermarket in Souillac to go shopping with his Renault Trafic van. While looking for a parking space, the driver feels that he is driving over something. His first instinct is to imagine that it is a shopping bag forgotten on the road. Pedestrians signal him to stop. When he got out of his vehicle to look, he discovered a man lying under his wheels.

The gendarmes were called to the scene around 6:30 p.m. The SAMU doctor noted the death of the victim, a 69-year-old man, around 6:55 p.m.

The investigation will try to determine the exact circumstances of this manslaughter. From the start, the driver is unable to give an explanation. As he has already explained to investigators, he repeats in court that he did not see the victim. “I don't know if he came from the front or the side. I looked left and right to park. My attention was focused on the cars that were perhaps going to leave their parking space. I was driving slowly, at 5 km/h. I didn't see it. There were a lot of people around me, there were people in the supermarket. »

The gendarmes note that there is no no trace of impact on the van. Some traces of blood were found on the driver's door. The victim was carrying a shopping bag at the time of impact; traces of dairy products are present on the left front tire. Hence the hypothesis that the pedestrian arrived from the left side of the vehicle. Otherwise, nothing more.

After verification, it turns out that the driver was not using his cell phone at the time of the accident. He had not consumed any alcohol or narcotics.

How could the driver not have seen the victim or even felt shock at the moment of impact? Several possibilities were considered, such as possible glare from the low sun. The police even considered the possibility that the victim was already lying on the ground at the time of impact. But a woman at the scene says the man was standing when he was hit. She explains that the speed of the van was suitable for a parking lot. And specifies that the van did not slow down after the impact, proof that the driver did not feel anything at the time.

At the end of the examination of the file, the Cahors court is still seeking an explanation. Was the driver's attention focused on finding a parking space, which is why he did not see the pedestrian?

A double sentence

M^e Mustapha Yassfythe lawyer for the two sisters and the victim's brother, Georges Tardieu, expresses his frustration. “I’m still hungry, I wanted an explanation…” “This unfortunate accident had terrible consequences. The family is known in the Souillac area, particularly in the rugby world. Georges Tardieu was a former teacher at the Louis Vicat high school in Souillac. » To try to assess the financial damage for the victim's loved ones, the lawyer mentions the harm from suffering endured and the impending anxiety harmbelieving that the victim “did not die suddenly, she was conscious”.

M^me the deputy prosecutor believes that the driver “had to show increased vigilance in the parking lot”. “You have to be vigilant, attentive, have a 360° perspective. The gentleman tells us that he did not see it, there was some carelessness. He was looking for a parking space closest to the supermarket entrance. We all have this reflex, me first. To the detriment of vigilance. The pedestrian must be our priority. » She recalls the driver's clean record and requests a suspended prison sentence of 12 months with a suspension of the driving license for three years.

“It’s mysterious” notes M^e Émilie Geffroylawyer for A. “We don't really have an answer to what happened, no explanation that is satisfactory for the family and for my client. He will have to continue to live with this questioning. He was under stress. He was shocked to see a man under his wheels. » The lawyer responds to the criticism made by the civil party's lawyer. “He thinks a lot about the family, but he hasn’t written to them. He felt that it would be of no use. »

A. speaks last. “It was a terrible accident. It's going to stay with me for a long time. »

He was sentenced to 24 months in prison with a simple suspended sentence and a driving license suspension for 12 months. The court dismisses the civil party's claim for damage from suffering endured and damage from imminent anguish. “It is not sufficiently established that the victim was aware of what happened, it is not characterized” believes the president.

The driver has 10 days to file an appeal.

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