“This man took two lives”: a driver sentenced to seven years in prison after the death of a pregnant woman in Morbihan

“This man took two lives”: a driver sentenced to seven years in prison after the death of a pregnant woman in Morbihan
“This man took two lives”: a driver sentenced to seven years in prison after the death of a pregnant woman in Morbihan

Head bowed, arms crossed, the defendant, of Moldovan nationality, listens to his interpreter. Through the latter’s words, he relives the accident, this time from the perspective of the victims and witnesses. That evening, everything happened very quickly. The left lane of the national road is condemned and causes a significant slowdown. All the cars move at walking pace except one, the van. He crashed into the car in front of him at more than 80 km/h, which was violently thrown onto the emergency lane, immobilized on the passenger side by the van. In her momentum, she hits a second car, also thrown onto the central barrier.

“Murderous behavior”

One of the victims manages to get out of his vehicle. The passenger in the first car is stuck on the passenger side, unconscious. A nurse manages to reach him through the driver’s window. Despite cardiac massage, the young woman was pronounced dead.

Brother, sister, parents, cousins, friends… Many of the victim’s relatives are present at the hearing. “Karen is no longer here, neither is my daughter. She was a person full of life,” breathes her companion, filled with sadness. On the evening of the incident, he lost consciousness and woke up in hospital, where he learned of his wife’s death. “For him to be condemned for what he did, we didn’t ask for anything,” he finishes.

The lawyer for the 17 civil parties addresses the audience: “This man took two lives.” The prosecution’s indictment which followed was sharp: “She had no chance of getting out of it. It was murderous conduct.”

Overloaded van

The 35-year-old man will not be able to look up at the family. “I braked, too late. If I could give my life for her to come back, I would,” he says. His van is overloaded by almost a ton, which is 30% over the authorized weight. Braking capacity is significantly reduced. Added to this are the 2.21 grams of alcohol per liter in the defendant’s blood, the absence of a driving license and an irregular situation for five years. He also told the court that, that Sunday, he had been working for 15 consecutive days.

The court sentenced Denis Turcanu to seven years in prison. He remains in detention and is also banned from driving any vehicle for five years.

-

-

PREV discover our ten semi-finalists!
NEXT Four years ago to the day, Gérard Lopez sold and left LOSC