Attempted Murder Trial Against Speedster in Upper Austria Begins

A 20-year-old driver, who engaged in a wild car chase with the police on the night of January 31, which ended with several injuries, has been on trial for attempted murder in Wels since Thursday. "He went on a rampage" and "accepted that someone might die," said the prosecutor. The defendant denies any "intent to kill." In October, a speeder in Vienna received a 15-year sentence for attempted murder in a similar case.

The Hungarian, now on trial in Wels and living in Linz, had previously engaged in car chases with the police and received numerous fines for traffic offenses, said the prosecutor. His driver's license had already been revoked, and his car was not registered. Nevertheless, on the evening of the crime - after mounting his mother's license plates on his car - he set off for a discussion with his ex-girlfriend in Wels. Shortly after she got into the car with him, the police noticed him, and the driver fled.

145 km/h Impact Speed

During the subsequent "rampage," he ran red lights, crossed solid lines and areas, overtook on the hard shoulder, all at times with extremely excessive speed, said the prosecutor. According to the GPS, the route should take 28 minutes, but the defendant drove it in 15 minutes. Neither dangerous situations nor the police pursuing him, nor the onset of fog could stop him. During the drive, he called a friend who advised him to stop. He ignored this as well.

The prosecutor specifically listed "five life-threatening actions where one had to assume that people could die" - an overtaking maneuver at 190 km/h on the hard shoulder, a zigzag overtaking in a construction area (140 instead of 80 km/h), another overtaking maneuver in a curve - "if there hadn't been a turning lane in the middle, there would certainly have been fatalities" - as well as tailgating at less than five meters at 220 km/h. In the end, he crashed into a police roadblock, resulting in several injuries. The impact speed: 145 km/h.

The defendant had repeatedly said during the detention hearing that he was afraid someone might die, said the prosecutor. "Only when he realized the implications of this statement did he say he had misunderstood." As a second piece of evidence, the prosecution presents a video made by the pursuing police officers of the drive. According to a psychiatric report, the driver, who was neither influenced by alcohol nor drugs during this drive, was "consistently able to recognize the risk." The prosecution therefore sees multiple attempted murders, with victims being his passenger, police officers, and other road users.

"It Was a Flight Reaction"

The defendant pleaded not guilty to attempted murder. He claimed he had no intent to kill. He only pleaded guilty to other charges - suppression of documents due to the license plate and violation of the weapons law because he had a knuckle duster in the car. "The only thing going through his mind was 'away, away, away', it was a flight reaction," said his lawyer. Her client emphasized that he was very sorry. "I just thought if I drive a little faster, I would get away from the police faster," he justified himself. If he had seen anyone, he would have stopped, he said when asked about running red lights.

The - then 17-year-old - ex-girlfriend, who was sitting in the passenger seat, testified as a witness that the police wanted to stop them after the 20-year-old had crossed a solid line in Wels. She said she told him to stop, but "he ignored me and turned up the music." He had the phone in his hand, through which he controlled the music. "I was scared," her ex-boyfriend was "like a different person" that day. The young woman was seriously injured in the crash with the roadblock and still suffers from the consequences.

The trial will continue on Monday, including the psychiatric report by Adelheid Kastner. A verdict is also planned for September 15.

Speeder Convicted in Vienna

Last fall in Vienna, a reckless speeder who engaged in a six-minute police chase through several districts, caused several accidents, and seriously injured three people, was convicted of attempted murder. The now 36-year-old received a 15-year prison sentence. The verdict has been final since mid-June.

After the Supreme Court (OGH) confirmed the conviction, the Vienna Higher Regional Court (OLG) also dismissed the appeal against the sentence. The written judgment (17 Bs 105/25b) literally refers to a "rampage." The actions of the 36-year-old manifested a "massively indifferent attitude towards the protected legal interests of life and limb." It further states: "It was purely by chance that the drive did not have even more serious consequences, as the defendant endangered numerous lives overall." Therefore, the prison sentence imposed by the first court is "in no way subject to reduction."

(APA/Red)

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