An emblematic trial of road violence opened Monday in Belgium, where a 38-year-old motorist must answer for seven murders before a popular jury for having driven into a crowd gathering for a carnival in 2022.
In black pants and jacket, his eyes fixed on the ground, Paolo Falzone appeared shortly after 10:00 a.m. (08:00 GMT) in front of his judges and the dozens of injured people or relatives of victims who came to the hearing in Mons (south) in search of explanations.
"We're finally there! We're going to be united, we're going to be strong together to get through this ordeal," Florian Devise, seriously injured in the head during the accident, confided to journalists upon his arrival.
The tragedy occurred on March 20, 2022 in Strépy-Bracquegnies, a section of the town of La Louvière, known for its parade of "Gilles" in clogs, costume with bells and white headdress.
At 5:00 a.m., when the costumed men were "picked up" in the street, before the carnival parade, a car drove at very high speed into a group of around a hundred people gathered on the road.
At that time, the driver Paolo Falzone is returning from a nightclub with a friend at his side. He is launched into a burst of speed and cannot avoid the procession.
- 174 km/h -
The shock is extremely violent. The investigation will show that one minute from the first impact, his BMW with its pumped up engine was traveling at 174 km/h, despite the limit of 50 in this urban area.
Six people were killed instantly. Emergency services quickly dispatched to the scene found around forty injured, some of them very seriously. A seventh death will occur in 2024.
Unusually for a road accident, the trial is held before a criminal court, which has been relocated to an exhibition hall to accommodate nearly 200 civil parties in total.
Among them, Lorena Cascarano lost both of her parents and her maternal uncle who was her godfather, all three killed instantly in the procession.
“I am still incomprehension, like four years ago, devastated,” this 27-year-old student told AFP. "I'm not necessarily expecting apologies, but yes, explanations."
Paolo Falzone, a resident of Strépy known to be a fan of speed, habitual of traffic offenses, faces thirty years in prison.
He is tried with his friend and passenger Antonino Falzone (no relation). Accused of failure to assist a person in danger, the latter risks up to two years in prison.
- "Inaudible" -
At this trial, which is expected to last six to eight weeks, Paolo Falzone's lawyer, Frank Discepoli, should once again protest against the characterization of "murders" used by the courts.
“He never wanted to kill anyone!”, Mr. Discepoli told the press, recognizing his client’s “totally irresponsible” conduct.
Facing the defense,
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