2023-08-09 18:09:00
In 2019, a motorcyclist fell from a bridge in La Louvière (the access bridge to the A501 motorway). The railing had been torn off in an accident 13 years earlier and it was not repaired, it still isn’t. The Walloon Region, Sofico and SPW are being prosecuted for manslaughter. The trial is held at the Hainaut police court.
Jonathan lost his life in 2019 following losing control of his motorbike and falling off the bridge. The guardrail had been torn off in an accident in 2006, 13 years earlier, and had never been repaired. Today, it still isn’t. Misunderstanding for the mother of the deceased biker.
“It’s hard to say to yourself that we lost a child in such circumstances. Things might have been different if there had been the barrier. I no longer want any family to suffer what we have suffered . That’s why I’m going to the trial”, says Marjorie Lepère, Jonathan’s mother.
On the bench of the defendants: Sofico, the Walloon Region and the SPW Mobility and Infrastructures. All must answer for manslaughter by lack of foresight and precaution.
“It’s been more than 13 years since an accident happened, part of a barrier was torn off, they were compensated to repair the barrier… In the meantime, two other accidents have occurred exactly the same place. In the end, nothing was done. It’s an abstinence”says Christophe Redko, the lawyer for Jonathan’s mother.
We contacted the Public Service of Wallonia and Sofico to understand the situation. We were told that a repair was still not planned at this time. “The barrier cannot be put back because the structure of the bridge is weakened and does not allow it. More substantial work is planned but no date has been set for the moment. This bridge is not part of the priority work.”
The next hearing is scheduled for next October. It will take place before the Hainaut police court.
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