28-year-old Tim from Eindhoven was given 200 hours of community service for running over a traffic controller with his car in his hometown last May. He also hit a woman. Because of these traffic violations, he also lost his driver’s license for nine months. According to the court in Den Bosch, the Eindhoven man drove irresponsibly and did not care for the victims.
The traffic controller, 50-year-old Salim Sert, was dragged along on the Eindhoven man’s car for metres after the collision. He suffered a broken foot, among other injuries. The woman who was hit sustained injuries to her calf. The accidents happened after the Bontgenoten music festival.
Tim ignored several stop signs from the traffic controller, although he stated during the hearing that he had not seen anything until the traffic controller was suddenly on the hood of his car. Sert was dragged several metres. In addition to a broken foot, he suffered months of severe headaches. The traffic controller only recently returned to work. He still cannot stand for long.
Panic
Tim was stopped at home the night after the festival. He had driven straight home in a panic. “I didn’t know what to do. I drank a beer and smoked a joint to calm myself down”, he explained his flight.
Still, Sert wants to forgive him: “He apologised and said he learned from it”. My Muslim faith wants you to forgive. After all, everyone has to get on with their lives again. Even before the hearing, two weeks ago, the two gave each other an encouraging pat on the back. This also reassured Tim’s lawyer: “Hence I had a good feeling about this verdict”, she said.
Aggravated assault
The prosecution initially wanted to prosecute the suspect for attempted manslaughter. Because it could not be proven that Tim had been drinking too much and driving too fast during the collision, the charge was downgraded to aggravated assault. Two weeks ago, the prosecutor demanded 200 hours of community service and revocation of the driver’s license for nine months.
The court imposed the same sentence on him. In addition, Tim will receive three months of jail time to serve if he commits the offense again in the next three years. The Eindhoven native must also report to the probation department and seek treatment. If he does not comply with the conditions, he will lose his driver’s license even longer. His car, however, will be returned to him. The lawyer of the Eindhoven man assumes that his client will accept the verdict.
Source: Studio040
Translated by: Bob
