Cop convicted in fatal crash will not serve jail time; Was driving 80 km/h too fast

A 26-year-old police officer from Eindhoven was sentenced by the court in den Bosch to 200 hours of community service for causing a fatal accident in December by speeding. The accident resulted in the death of a 31-year-old motorcyclist in the Woensel-Zuid district of Eindhoven.

Police officer Niels van H. was driving up to 129 kilometers per hour in a 50-kilometer-per-hour zone on December 6, 2022. Approaching the intersection with Woenselsestraat at full speed with flashing lights but without sirens, the police car struck the motorcyclist. He attempted an emergency stop at the last moment. The motorcyclist died at the scene from his injuries.

The investigation found that the police officer was driving at 129 kilometers per hour just one second before the collision and struck the victim at 100 kilometers per hour. He also crossed over a solid line and drove on the wrong side of the road in an area that was busy and confusing.

"It was much too fast and it should never have happened. I regret doing it," said the police officer, according to Omroep Brabant. He explained that he and his colleague were responding to a report of a stolen bait bicycle and had not kept a close enough watch on the speedometer.

The court found that the officer was driving “far too eagerly and with insufficient regard for the safety of other road users” in responding to the call, as he made “a completely wrong decision between the performance of his police duties and road safety.” According to police guidelines, he was allowed to exceed the speed limit by 40 kilometers per hour, a rule he violated, according to the court.

The Public Prosecution Service demanded a prison sentence of 90 days, 89 of which were suspended, accusing the officer of recklessness, the gravest form of culpability.

However, the court did not agree as the officer had considered traffic safety by trying to warn other road users with his flashing lights. The court also noted that the actions of a police officer entail risk, and it is therefore “not appropriate to impose the same penalty as on a regular road user.”

The court sentenced him to 200 hours of community service. He also received a driving ban of one year, with six months suspended.

Nonetheless, the court acknowledged that the sentence may not be proportionate to the suffering experienced by the relatives. “The court hopes that the proceedings have contributed to their coping with this suffering."