the driver referred to the Marseille Criminal Court
The investigating judges of the “collective accidents” pole of Marseille, territorially competent for the town of Millas (Pyrénées-Orientales), issued their referral order concerning the tragedy that occurred on December 14, 2017 at the level crossing of the Catalan village. The driver of the school bus will be tried in correctional for “unintentional homicides and injuries”. Six children died when the bus collided with a train.
On December 14, 2017, 6 children died and 17 others were injured in the collision between a train and a school car at the Millas level crossing (Pyrénées-Orientales). The Marseille judges competent in this case have just taken charge of the driver before the criminal court. She will be tried for “manslaughter and unintentional injuries by driver”.
The 158-page referral order was signed on January 5, after four years of investigation. In this document, the judges of the Marseille “collective accidents” pole concluding:
There is no doubt that the driver’s inattention and recklessness were the direct and certain cause of the accident: by not taking into account the closed nature of level crossing n ° 25 and by forcing, at flying her bus, with the half-gate closed at the said level crossing, she precipitated the percussion of her bus by a train which ran regularly.
Order for dismissal of the driver of the Millas school bus
The driver has always maintained that the barriers were open, blaming the SNCF infrastructure (which the experts have not shown). His lawyer, Maître Jean Codognès, contested their conclusions, going so far as to request the cancellation of two technical investigations on the grounds that the panel of experts would have been affiliated with the railway company. A request which he was rejected in April 2021. He then announced that he would appeal to the Supreme Court.
The order for reference reaffirms it moreover: “There is no expert opinion that hypothesizes a malfunction of the level crossing.“. The investigating judges have therefore definitively swept this hypothesis, considering that”the majority of testimonies attesting to a level crossing open at the time of the accident“.
They particularly remember the statements of the two maintenance technicians who are stationary in their vehicle on the other side of the level crossing.
The only two perfectly objective witnesses. […] Their statements attest to a level crossing that worked perfectly. […] Their statements also reflect their impression that the driver of the car did not see the half-gate lowered, but also their disbelief and helplessness in the face of the drama that unfolded before their eyes.
Order for dismissal of the driver of the Millas school bus
On the other hand, the intentional act is not retained. A dismissal is pronounced with regard to the counts of “deliberate endangering the life of others” and “deliberate violation of an obligation of safety imposed by the law”. This is what master Jean Codognès, the driver’s lawyer, wants to remember.
It has been said that she was drugged, that she tampered with her cell phone while driving: this is not true! The investigation had nevertheless the merit of pruning a little between what was unfounded and what is criticized, and which can be debated.
Maître Jean Codognès, lawyer for the driver
The next judicial step before trial will be the pre-trial hearing scheduled for April 29, 2022 at the Marseille court. During this phase, the parties exchange their conclusions and communicate their documents so that the case is ready for trial.
On December 14, four years after the tragedy, a ceremony brought together in Millas the relatives of the little victims aged 11 to 13: Ophélia, Teddy, Diogo, Loïc, Allan and Yonas. This moment of meditation in front of the stele, held in their memory, took place in the presence of former minister Edouard Philippe, who had qualified the accident as “worst time“of his mandate.
When the driver of the bus in which her son, Fabien Bourgeonnier, Loïc’s father and co-founder of the association died, was announced to be sentenced to prison “In memory of our angels“, said to himself”ready to take to the skies“.
This referral is normal, it is in the continuity of things. We have had the answers for a long time: it’s a serious, serious matter. She crossed the level crossing. Now, we will perhaps have more details on the unfolding but above all, we must all learn from that so that no family will ever have to experience such a drama again.
Fabien Bourgeonnier, father of Loïc and co-founder of the association “In memory of our angels”
The association intends to continue its work to raise awareness of the dangers of crossing level crossings: “we have to say to ourselves: what can we do on the buses, the cars, the passages, so that this does not happen again? There must be a collective awareness that the danger comes from trains, but also from our driving behavior“.
Fabien Bourgeonnier also hopes to work with those involved in this file to set up safety devices such as retractable plots “for people to really stop“and to remove level crossings when possible.