Permissioned killing - Trial for wrongful death: The accused was blinded by the sun
In the process of a case regarding a car accident resulting in the death of a one-year-old child, the defendant, a 28-year-old woman, spoke of extremely poor visibility on the day in question at the Amtsgericht Trier. "The sun had stood so low and then it thundered", the woman stated before the court. "I didn't see anything else after that." She repeatedly stated that she could not remember the accident itself.
"I can't say how sorry I am for this. There's no excuse for it. I wish I could turn back time", the clerical worker lamented, facing charges for negligent homicide.
According to the indictment, the incident occurred in February 2023 on the Autobahn 1 near Mehring (Trier-Saarburg) due to inattention. A one-year-old boy, seated in a child seat in the back, sustained severe head injuries as a result. He passed away a few hours later in the hospital.
Multiple witnesses also reported being blinded by the sun at the Mehringer Hohe height on that day. "We saw nothing", an automobile driver stated who was driving the vehicle in which the child was fatally injured before the accident location. Shortly before the crash site, it was also reportedly foggy.
A police officer stated that the visibility was significantly impaired. The defendant reportedly told the officer at the scene that she had reached for a water bottle in the footwell of the passenger compartment just before the incident. Another police officer reported that there had been several accidents on that day.
In psychological treatment
The defendant's attorney stated that she had been unable to work for a long time after the accident and was still undergoing psychological treatment. The attorneys for the victim's parents also stated that they were still undergoing psychotherapeutic treatment. The parents had also been temporarily unable to work.
- The case related to the car accident, which led to a traffic accident death, is currently being handled in the District Court of Trier, located in Rhineland-Palatinate.
- The defendant, during her trial, explained that she had poor visibility due to the low sun and thunder, causing her to be momentarily blinded and unable to avoid the accident.
- The process involving the 28-year-old woman, who was charged with negligent homicide, focused on the incident that occurred on the Autobahn 1 near Mehring in Trier-Saarburg, where the automatic visibility conditions worsened due to both sunlight and fog.
- Following the traffic accident, multiple witnesses reported being blinded by the sun, contributing to their inability to notice the oncoming vehicles, as occurred in the case where the defendant failed to stop in time and collided with another vehicle, resulting in a death due to severe head injuries.
