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news
Child allegedly pushed over by cyclist in Belgium (Facebook video still)Suspended sentence for cyclist filmed knocking over five year old in Belgium
A cyclist who was filmed knocking over a four-year-old girl in Belgium on Christmas Day has been ordered to pay a symbolic €1 in damages claimed by the child’s family, with a judge also suspending sentencing for one year.
Footage of the incident, which happened close to the popular tourist destination of the Baraque Michel inn near Liege, went viral on social media after it was posted by the child’s father.
It showed the rider apparently sticking out his left knee to push the girl, named Neïa, out of the way after he came round a bend on a snow-covered path and found the child and her mother in his way.
The 61-year-old cyclist, who lives locally, handed himself into police after they launched an appeal and spent a night in the cells.
With the public prosecutor pressing charges of intentional assault and battery to a minor, the cyclist could have faced up to a year in jail.
But handing down its decision today, the court in Verviers, while agreeing that the footage showed that the cyclist had been riding too fast and there was insufficient space to overtake safely, stopped short of imposing an immediate custodial sentence, reports Le Soir.
In its decision, the court said that “the cyclist [had] dealt, by lack of foresight or precaution, an involuntary blow, without intention to attack the person of others, to Neïa.”
It added that “the defendant should have taken into account the climatic conditions (snow and frost) and the presence of many people including children, on this holiday, to adapt his speed and his conduct.”
In deciding to suspend the pronouncement of the sentence for a year, the court took into account factors including the relative seriousness of the case, the defendant’s character and lack of previous convictions, plus the time he spent in custody.
At an earlier hearing on 3 February, the cyclist said that he had not caused the child to fall on purpose.
“When I left my home and set off, there was hardly anyone there,” he explained. “It was only on this portion, of about 1 kilometre, near the Baraque Michel, that there were a lot of pedestrians.
“I braked, I adapted my speed and I activated my 120 decibel horn. As I passed the little girl, I felt my rear wheel slipping. To avoid the fall I rebalanced myself by doing a knee movement. I felt that I had touched the little girl but I did not immediately realise that she had fallen.”
The girl’s father, who had been filming, did see, however. “The father grabbed me by the shoulders and yelled,” the cyclist said.
“I apologised by telling him I had not seen her. Since she was threatening me, I went on my way when I saw that the little girl had got up and was not injured,” he added.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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12 comments
Didn't we do this whole debate/discussion when the original article was posted - with the added benefit of having the video rather than just a still picture? For what it's worth, I wasn't sure if it was deliberate, but was damned certain it was inconsiderate riding.
He was going a little too fast (Should have been more considerate). Ok his leg "may" have been to keep his balance.....but that said, he knew he had hit the child. He should have stopped, applogised, said he lost balance should not have squeezed past, may have seen the end of the matter.
But really he did a "I must get in front", so in my eyes is as bad as a car driver, you knocks off a cyclist and just drives on.
I hope the law here soon changes so that it is always the most vunerable person that is protected! Car for a lorry, Bike for a Car, Person for a Bike.
I don't think suspending sentencing is the same thing as a suspended sentence, is it?
Well, it's hard to believe that anyone would knock over a little girl on purpose and, looking at the photo, it certainly looks like he's slipping down the shoulder of the road. I'm sure he will be ultra-careful in future after the big storm-in-a-teacup he started!
The photo doesn't tell the full story you need to watch the video in the linked to article, certainly not a major crime, but a thoughtless bit of cycling and there is definitely a flick of the knee, you decide yourself whether it was reactionary or not.
I don't believe it was accidental. Looked entirely deliberate to me. Plus the fact he kept riding, without even glancing back to see if anything had happened...
I wonder what actions he would have performed had it been an adult on the receiving end of his 'knee balancing action'...wouldn't have just ploughed thru...
Even giving him the benefit of the doubt he was still travelling too fast and too close to pedestrians. If he'd kept his distance and rung his bell this would likely have never happened. We've all been on shared paths with slow pedestrians at some point. No need to squeeze past them at speed and (possibly) kick them though.
The pedestrians standing in the middle of the shared path and not looking around them for any oncoming path users?
(To be clear - I'm not defending him).
According to the cyclist, the path was virtually empty so the pedestrians probably weren't expecting to meet any other path users. As others have said, the cyclist just needed to slow/stop and wait for the peds to gather themselves and move over to one side - it would have taken 10 seconds max.
He says he blasted his 120dB horn. I guess he thought that gave him a clear run, which says enough about the guy. As to keeping his distance, we'll yes, if he'd managed to keep his distance then he would not have hit anyone.
I do think the knee thing was a balancing reflex, likely misconstrued by an enraged parent. Too bad he lacks the other reflexes required to cycle in a public place.
Yeah, that's not hostile at all (Sarcasm). These are ordinary people and a young kid, not road traffic. Blasting the horn (so he claims) doesn't allow him to run people down. If a car did this to him i'm sure he'd be up in arms about being close passed and clipped by the vehicle.
I'm sure we'd be up in arms about an unsafe pass undertaken without care that resulted in a collision.