It was almost a year ago, on August 8, 2021. Two sisters aged 41 and 49 died in Béziers after being hit by a driver. A terrible tragedy, while the driver was driving drunk, at full speed and with all lights off on Kennedy Blvd.
The perpetrator, Vincent, 32, was prosecuted this Thursday, July 28 before the Béziers criminal court for manslaughter with two aggravating circumstances (in an alcoholic state and with deliberate breach of safety rules). This former manager of a metal recycling company based in Agathois was sentenced to 5 years in prison, 4 of which are closed. He faced up to ten years in prison.
The tragedy occurred 100 meters as the crow flies from the home of one of the victims
The victims, both mothers of three children, were from Reunion. One of them worked at the municipal social action center of the town hall of Béziers. The other, domiciled in Caluire-et-Cuire (Rhône) had come on vacation to the region. The forties were walking back from a nearby restaurant. The youngest was celebrating her birthday.
A shock of extreme violence
The victims were mowed down as they crossed Kennedy Boulevard, a four-lane boulevard. They had almost arrived at their home. They had one more step to take before they were safe; at the time of the impact, they were under an illuminated street lamp and were onlyonly 60 centimeters from the sidewalk. It was impossible not to see them there. Even in the middle of the night, this long straight line, very clear, is quite well lit.
The shock was so violent that their bodies were thrown 40 meters further for the first, 50 meters for the second. The driver’s car, totally damaged at the front, stopped in the middle on the pedestrian crossing.
The day after this tragedy France Bleu went to the scene of the accident
Drunk, the driver came out of a bar in Béziers
The driver had 1.64 g of alcohol per liter of blood. This man, single and childless, was returning home to the Courondelle district (north of the city). Vincent was driving way too fast, between 76km/h and 86km/h depending on the expert. He rammed his victims without any reaction. As we noticed at the time, no signs of braking were visible on the road.
When help arrived, the driver was sitting next to one of the victims, smoking a cigarette. He faced up to ten years in prison.
During the investigation, he denied having drunk and used drugs. He claimed he had a lighting problem. This Thursday, at the helm, he changed his attitude.
“I’m ashamed I broke up a family. I committed the irreparable I know that my place is in prison.”
Apart from two minor speeding tickets in 2017, he had 12 points on his license and his criminal record was clean.
The families of the victims are not present at the hearing.
Each year, alcohol kills more than 1,000 people on the roads in France, especially at night. And in a large majority of cases (90%), drunk drivers are men. 25% of those killed are between 18 and 24 years old. Road Safety figures are chilling.