The investigation into the road accident involving former deputy director of the Prison Service, Artur Dziadosz, which occurred in November 2019, was discontinued. Experts assessed that the accident in which the pedestrian died was not the driver's fault.
The prosecutor's office discontinued the investigation into the case that had been ongoing for over 5 years road accident with the participation of former deputy director of the Prison Service, Artur Dziadosz, which took place on November 4, 2019 at a marked pedestrian crossing in Kozienice (Masovian Voivodeship). The deputy head of the SW, driving a Mazda, hit an elderly woman on the crossing. The pedestrian died the next day in hospital.
– The analysis of the evidence collected in the case did not provide evidence that the driver, when approaching the pedestrian crossing, did not exercise due caution and violated other road traffic rules that would have a cause-and-effect relationship with the accident – said the spokeswoman of the District Prosecutor's Office. in Lublin Agnieszka Kępka, adding that the prosecutor's decision is not final.
Seven expert opinions were created
Initially, the investigation was conducted by the District Prosecutor's Office in Kozienice, then it was transferred to Lublin. At some point, the supervision over it was taken over by the then head of the Regional Prosecutor's Office in Lublin, Jerzy Ziarkiewicz, a trusted person of the former Minister of Justice. Zbigniew Ziobro. During the 5 years of the investigation, seven expert opinions on the accident were prepared.
– During the proceedings, in order to determine the direct cause and circumstances of the accident, several court experts in the field of automotive technology and road traffic were appointed to provide opinions, and the opinion of the Institute of Forensic Expertise was sought. prof. Dr. Jan Sehn in Kraków, an opinion was obtained from an expert in the field of technical and forensic reconstruction of road accidents and a court expert in the field of automotive technology and road traffic – said prosecutor Kępka.
Already at the beginning of the proceedings, investigators established that the deputy head of the SW, driving a private car, was driving third in a column of vehicles that were separated by a short distance. “The vehicles in front of him were crossing the pedestrian crossing a few seconds before him and the injured party was standing on the sidewalk in front of the crossing, letting the column of cars pass. Then the woman suddenly decided to enter the crossing,” said the spokeswoman of the Lublin prosecutor's office.
Analyzing the pedestrian's behavior, the expert concluded that by entering the road directly in front of the moving car, she created a threat to road traffic. Thus – according to experts – the woman caused the road accident. The experts also stated that, considering the unfavorable weather conditions at the time of the accident, the speed at which the driver of the Mazda was traveling was safe.
The spokeswoman emphasized that according to the content of another specialist opinion prepared by the Institute of Forensic Expertise. prof. Dr. Jan Sehn in Kraków showed that the car driven by Dziadosz was traveling at a speed of approximately 48 plus or minus 5 km/h at the time of the collision. Therefore – in the experts' opinion – the driver cannot be effectively accused of exceeding the speed limit on this section of the road. “The content of the opinion shows that the direct cause of the road accident was the dangerous entry of a pedestrian onto the road directly in front of an oncoming Mazda vehicle,” concluded prosecutor Kępka.
She added that another appointed expert did not state in his opinion that driving within the administratively permissible speed, even in wet road and rain conditions, was a violation of safe driving rules. Also in the next opinion issued in this case, the expert concluded that the Mazda driver's driving technique and tactics were correct in the moment just before the accident.
The regulations entered into force in 2021
The regulations requiring drivers to stop before pedestrian crossings have been in force in Poland since June 1, 2021. When approaching a pedestrian crossing, the driver is obliged to exercise particular caution, reduce speed so as not to endanger any pedestrian on or entering the crossing, and give way to a pedestrian on the crossing.
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