The Investigative Court 2 of Salamanca has sentenced the man who drove the truck that fatally ran over the cycling promise Estela Domínguez in 2023 to a fine of 5,400 euros and 18 months without a driving license. The 18-year-old girl was run over by the heavy vehicle in what is judicially considered “homicide due to less serious recklessness”, a minor crime, because it has been understood that the accused did not see the athlete, bothered by the sun, before hitting her. The sentence can be appealed to the Provincial Court of Salamanca. The family of the deceased has been outraged throughout the process because they understand that the punishment requested for the perpetrator of the accident was low, for whom they claimed in vain the crimes of omission of help and abandoning the scene. The trial, last Friday, was held amid moments of tension with shouts like “Murderer!” or “How cheap it is to kill!”, to which the accused responded by confronting the cyclist’s relatives.
The judicial resolution imposes the highest of the punishments allowed by the classification of the crime of “homicide due to less serious recklessness”, a category that the defense of those close to him tried to elevate by understanding that the man must have seen Estela and reacted to her presence. The girl, a university student in Salamanca and of Valladolid origin, was training around the Villares de la Reina industrial estate on February 10, 2023 when, around six-thirty in the afternoon, she received the fatal impact of the truck driven by this individual. The man alleged both in his first statements before the Civil Guard and in the judicial proceedings that in no case did he become aware of the young woman’s presence, because “the sun was shining directly into his eyes,” according to the report from the Civil Guard. The accused, who was testing a heavy vehicle after a repair in a workshop, said that he noticed “how something fell to the ground and passed over him” and that “he never thought it was a bicycle.” He continued driving until he returned the machine to the workshop, got into a van and returned to the scene thinking that there would be some fallen part, although he discovered the presence of the victim.
The family has claimed the technical report of the Civil Guard, where more doubts are raised about the accused’s story. According to this study, the driver would have visibility of approximately 600 meters that afternoon and “should have seen” the victim: he was traveling at about 60 kilometers per hour and she at 33, according to the geopositioning device he used. Furthermore, he pedaled on the right and with a flashing light, as is recommended on the roads. The report highlights that this pilot light “considerably” increased the chances of seeing it, since it is usually visible from more than 300 meters. The accused, therefore, should have noticed “well in advance” and “have moderated his speed” when approaching. He insisted that the sun was shining on his face and that his windshield was dirty, so he drove with one hand covering his visor. Tests for alcohol or narcotics were negative.
Estela Domínguez was the daughter of Juan Carlos Domínguez, a retired professional cyclist, and Yolanda García, who have called for an increase in the sentence against the person responsible for the death. Both believe that the duty of rescue was omitted and that the scene of the incident was abandoned, although the suspect later returned, although neither the Prosecutor’s Office nor the judge have accepted this requirement to increase the type of crime. The Provincial Court, to whom this change was requested, rejected the omission of relief because, according to subsequent analyses, the accused returned “expressing, very nervous, to the Civil Guard agents that ‘it was me’, ‘it was me’. ‘, in addition to having carried out, after the impact, a maneuver in zig Zag and having slowed down, all of which must be interpreted as evidence that he realized what happened.” The prosecutor gave the same reasons.
Juan Carlos Domínguez has insisted to the media that the accused was probably distracted, since when testing the truck he could have been driving a technological device, although this argument has not been judicially proven. “She took him in front of him and didn’t stop,” the man claimed on Friday before the Salamanca court. The ruling allows an appeal to the Provincial Court of Salamanca, a legal possibility presumably exercised by the aggrieved parties, as the father anticipated: “We are going to continue fighting, Estela would not have wanted it to remain like this.”
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