Ambulance accident in Białystok: The court conditionally discontinued the proceedings against the driver

The accident occurred at ul. Suchowolca. It was dark. A truck stopped in front of the crossing to let a pedestrian cross. The ambulance driver began to pass it on the left, not paying enough attention and not reducing speed appropriately.

At that moment, a 10-year-old boy came out from behind the truck onto the crosswalk and was hit by an ambulance.

The injuries turned out to be less serious

The boy was taken to hospital with suspected very serious injuries, including to the head. Initially, the prosecutor's office concluded that there was serious damage to his health that could have been life-threatening.

However, subsequent tests showed that the injuries were less serious than initially thought and did not cause serious, lasting consequences.

This assessment was important for the court's decision. The legal classification of the act was changed to a milder one, which made it possible to conditionally discontinue the proceedings.

The recording helped determine the course of the accident

The court also took into account the circumstances of the accident itself and the driver's behavior. Important evidence was the camera recording of the car that was leaving the gas station at the time of the incident. The boy's mother obtained the recording.

It showed that the ambulance driver saw the child from a much closer distance than indicated by the expert examining the accident and did not have much time to react (ultimately, he suddenly turned left and tried to brake).

Judge Krzysztof Kozłowski emphasized that even the driver of an emergency vehicle, who may not comply with certain road traffic regulations in certain situations, still must be particularly careful.

In the court's opinion, the driver should have slowed down significantly and even stopped the vehicle. He made a mistake because he did not notice that the truck had stopped not to let the ambulance pass, but because there was a pedestrian in front of it.

According to the court, several circumstances influenced the course of the event. Among other things, the boy's behavior was pointed out as he did not react to the loud sound and light signals of the ambulance.

The court therefore found that the child also contributed to the accident.

At the same time, it was emphasized that the driver's fault was undisputed. However, the court found that the degree of his guilt and the social harmfulness of the act were not great enough to require a penalty.

The prosecutor's office wanted a suspended prison sentence

The court did not agree with the prosecutor's proposal, which demanded a six-month suspended prison sentence. The judge described such a request as absurd. I don't know if this is a show of power of the prosecutor's office (...), I don't understand this attitude - he said. He also pointed out that in similar cases the prosecutor's office often requests a conditional discontinuation of the proceedings.

Earlier, the driver and the boy's mother reached a settlement during mediation. The man paid PLN 3,000. PLN partial compensation. For this reason, the court no longer decided on the issue of compensation.

The ruling is not yet final. The defense and the driver himself requested a conditional discontinuation of the case. However, it is not known whether the prosecutor's office will appeal against the verdict, because its representative was not present when the verdict was announced.

The driver still works as a paramedic and responds to emergency calls, but has not driven ambulances since the accident.