A 60-year-old woman suspected of involvement in a hit-and-run accident in Heusden-Zolder, Limburg, faces up to six months in prison, an €8,000 fine, and at least a three-month driving ban.
The woman, who appeared before the Hasselt police court on Wednesday, will also have to retake the theoretical and practical driving exams, and undergo medical and psychological assessments.
The accident occurred on 23 July 2022 on Pastoor Douvenstraat. The woman was at the wheel of her vehicle when it reportedly struck a friend with whom she had been in a café in Heusden-Zolder just half an hour earlier. The victim survived, but had to undergo rehabilitation. A final damage assessment still needs to be made.
The defendant was arrested and taken in for questioning in September 2022 but was later released.
The prosecution supported a partial suspension of her driving license, while both the prosecution and the attorney for the civil party claimed that she had tried to conceal her involvement in the accident.
The defendant had been the last person to see the victim when they left the café at around 2 a.m. The 39-year-old victim was later found with severe injuries, but the defendant denied knocking her down.
“I work at an insurance office. I would never drive with too much alcohol. I had one and a half glasses of wine that night,” she said.
“The victim was unsteady and had argued with her partner,” she added. “I offered to drive her home, but she refused. She walked to her car, and I drove home. I don’t know what happened after that.”
Half an hour later, the café owner called to say her friend was lying on the street and had been hit, but the defendant did not check on her.
The Heusden-Zolder police investigated and found a Mercedes in the defendant’s driveway that may have been involved in the accident. However, the accused denied involvement, prompting a judicial investigation.
Moreover, the defendant had asked the café owner not to mention her to the police. She also reset her phone to factory settings, and CCTV footage from the café was mysteriously erased. She did not deny her Mercedes was involved, but insisted that she had not felt or known anything of the incident.
For her part, the victim told the court she could not remember the events of that day.
Her attorney, Kurt Smets, requested €1 in provisional damages, while the lawyer for Axa insurance company, André Byvoet, requested €60,505 in provisional damages.
Defence lawyer Tiziana Mariongu requested an acquittal, presenting the defence expert’s opinion. “We believe the victim was already on the ground. According to our expert, the defendant could not have seen someone lying in the street from the driver’s seat,” the defence claimed.
The verdict is scheduled for 12 February.
