Hendrik_S Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 George Aspenaal that hit the cyclists is out on bail. http://www.ofm.co.za/news.asp?nid=7113Hendrik_S2010-03-09 08:40:32
Taps Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 As he is 62 I bet you he has cataracts and that's why he was blinded by the sunlight and didn't see the oncoming cyclists. I wonder who his eyecare practitioner is and when last he had his eyes checked?
Andyr249 Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 Let him enjoy his last days before visiting Bubba in the Tronk!
Eugene Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 Why shouldn't he get bail? He may have been negligent, but I don't think he diberately headed for them an killed those cyclists. It was an accident. He is not a flight risk, I bet he will be there in court. I know those guys are dead, I know their families are suffering. But, for one moment, think what he may be going through. That is punishment enough. If I had caused such an accident, I would be a wreck right now. Accidents happen and its nothing to do with Africa. People die on the roads all over the world in accidents I doubt he will be visiting Bubba, unless they can prove he intentionally ran them down.
Shakes Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 Why shouldn't he get bail? He may have been negligent' date=' but I don't think he diberately headed for them an killed those cyclists. It was an accident. He is not a flight risk, I bet he will be there in court. I know those guys are dead, I know their families are suffering. But, for one moment, think what he may be going through. That is punishment enough. If I had caused such an accident, I would be a wreck right now. Accidents happen and its nothing to do with Africa. People die on the roads all over the world in accidents I doubt he will be visiting Bubba, unless they can prove he intentionally ran them down.[/quote'] I agree with you Eugene!
Nettie R Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 Accidents happen and its nothing to do with Africa. People die on the roads all over the world in accidents Sure, 'accidents happen', but you say that when you spill coffee over someone's suit, step on their toe, etc.Maybe we're so used to tv shows and their bail applications of a kazillion dollars. This person will have his day in court.
Desi Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 I also agree with Eugene. Let's not make this worse than it is. I don't think any 60-something year old deliberately goes out to kill people. They had to treat the guy for shock. And these things do happen all over the world, even in sleepy Tasmania: http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/australian-killed-in-crash-during-training
wildroadie Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 He's a prisoner of his circumstances right now. That has to be considered a small part of his punishment. I am not defending him as it is the most awful accident I have heard of in a while but let's not forget the word accident.
Napalm Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 Accidents do happen - but if you pass a truck on a blindspot, and then claim that the sun is in your eyes, when the sun only rose later, that's not an accident - that's negligence.
ChrisH Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 Why shouldn't he get bail? He may have been negligent' date=' but I don't think he diberately headed for them an killed those cyclists. It was an accident. He is not a flight risk, I bet he will be there in court. I know those guys are dead, I know their families are suffering. But, for one moment, think what he may be going through. That is punishment enough. If I had caused such an accident, I would be a wreck right now. Accidents happen and its nothing to do with Africa. People die on the roads all over the world in accidents I doubt he will be visiting Bubba, unless they can prove he intentionally ran them down.[/quote'] Eugene I agree with your sentiments but I don't accept that it was an accident.<?: prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /> An accident is defined as an unexpected and undesirable event. If as reported, he overtook while he was blinded by the sun then that is a negligent event and was pretty much foreseeable. In fact on the advanced driving courses I have been on it has always been stressed that no collision on the road is an accident. All are as a result of someone?s action or inaction.
Headshot Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 No he didnt do it on purpose but he could do jail time for culpable homicide.
firewalker Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 "Soweto dicers and multiple cyclist killer get life" there's a huge difference between negligence and an accident. accident from latin "fall upon, befall, happen, chance". this situation did not happen upon him, he took negligent steps that resulted in the end of three innocent peoples lives. for them it was an accident, it did fall upon, befall, happen, chance. he overtook in haste without having visibility. the two pieces of gutter rubbish that were dicing yesterday and killed those four children could also claim the same defence, they didnt set out to murder. for these reasons we have the term manslaughter, culpable homicide. these laws are in place to prevent rash decisions that result in other peoples deaths. the law demands that some people are 'martyred' to dissuade others in the future from repeating said 'accident'. i would call for all three of yesterdays slaughterers to be hung from public spaces and flogged to deter a repeat of what occured. i think the sooner we metaphorically publicly tar and feather people who cause harm to others, the sooner the rest of the population will realise that we are accountable! for our actions, accountable! for our negligence, accountable! for our stupid decisions, and we can start moving forward as a civilized society. i would demand the same treatment for myself if my actions were incorrect and befell an innocent person. and i agree, his own personal hell is probably far more awful right now than anyone can imagine, i dont doubt that he has a lifetime of remorse to look forward to, but unfortunately like children in a classroom, the law needs to make examples constantly and without prejudice to maintain the fragile order that we are incapable of maintaining ourselves without consistency. i dont think personal remorse is yet a substitute for legal implications. the best thing that could happen to this countries roads right now is this headline tomorrow " Soweto dicers and mass cyclist killer get life" three people made an example of. and their tally still doesnt match even half of the one days death toll. go ahead and publicly lambast me but thats my opinion
Joe Low Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 I partly agree with Eugene. The guy didnt intend to hurt the people; but his actions were reckless (from what we're told) & a normal person could see that there could be harm to others arising from them. That makes it criminal and a possible manslaughter case (culpable homicide). The R500 bail seems crazy but not unusual. Maybe someone else knows why these levels are set and does it mean the offence isnt taken very seriously?
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