Ypres (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The woman involved in the fatal A19 crash in Ypres last year has been moved from prison to a psychiatric hospital’s closed ward, judicial officials confirmed.
For a long time, her attorney had been pleading for this, but it had gone unheard.
A 26-year-old Menen woman was responsible for a deadly collision on the A19 between Ypres and Zonnebeke, Belgium, in early October.
She struck a Wallonian family’s automobile while driving against the flow of traffic. The family’s 63-year-old father was murdered.
Serious injuries were sustained by his partner and one of their two teenage daughters. The other girl was slightly hurt.
Suspected of manslaughter and attempted manslaughter, the Menen driver was taken into custody.
However, her attorney argued that the woman was not accountable since she was in a psychotic state and was unable to discriminate between fact and fiction. The attorney claims that it doesn’t matter if the psychosis was perhaps brought on by drug use.
He also maintained for a long time that his client had severe psychological issues and ought to be sent to a psychiatric facility rather than being imprisoned.
In May, the council chamber voted to release the lady from prison pending her trial.
She was required to stop using drugs and alcohol and to be admitted to a mental health facility. The office of the public prosecutor, however, filed an appeal. Consequently, the council chamber has now concurred with the decision made by the Indictment Chamber.
Apart from being subjected to rigorous surveillance and prohibited from using drugs and alcohol, the Menen woman is also prohibited from contacting the deceased victim’s relatives.
How did her lawyer’s plea influence the hospital’s decision process?
By officially voicing worries about the woman’s mental state and arguing for specialist care, the lawyer’s request to transfer the victim of the deadly Ypres accident to a psychiatric institution probably had an impact on the hospital’s decision-making process.
Medical facilities may reconsider a patient’s condition as a result of legal representation in certain situations, particularly if the attorney offers reliable proof or arguments regarding the defendant’s mental health that may not have been properly taken into account at first.
In the larger framework of legal-medical decision-making, lawyers are essential in emphasizing the necessity of mental health evaluations and therapies, which can influence hospitals to adopt or modify patient placement and care policies.
