Cacic trial

Two experts stick to their assessment of speed of Cacic's car

21.06.2012 u 11:27

Bionic
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The trial of Croatia's First Deputy Prime Minister Radimir Cacic, charged with causing a traffic accident with two fatalities in Hungary, resumed before the Kaposvar County court on Thursday with testimonies of two expert witnesses who had already differed in their opinions whether Cacic had driven too fast or not when his Chrysler hit a Skoda Fabia on the Nagykanisza-Budapest motorway in January 2010.

Expert Zoltan Lovasz, who previously testified that the accident had been caused by speeding, today insisted that Cacic had driven at the speed between 140 and 150 kilometres per hour when the accident happened, adding, however, that a margin of error was between 10 and 15 percent, which meant that the speed of Cacic's car might range between 125 and 165 kilometres per hour.

According to his assessment, the Skoda Fabia was driven by Katalin Liptak at the speed 40 kilometres slower.

Lovasz also insists that Cacic failed to adjust his driving to the conditions on the road. Cacic, however, claims he had been driving at the speed of 125 kilometres per hour, which was below the upper limit of 130 kilometres per hour, and that he had entered a patch of fog when he hit the car in front of him.

Expert Mihaly Rektor, who already claimed that the speed of Cacic's car had not been excessive and that the two passengers in the Skoda Fabia sustained fatal injuries when their car crashed into the motorway barrier, today said that after studying additional expert materials on this matter he had come to a conclusion that Cacic had been driving at the speed of 135 kilometres per hour.

Cacic appeared at the Hungarian court accompanied by his lawyer Cedo Prodanovic

In attendance at today's hearing was Katalin Liptak, the Skoda Fabia driver. Her lawyer said before the hearing that the court might gave its judgement today. In the fatal accident, Katalin Liptak and Zoltanne Hitter survived the crash, but Liptak's 81-year-old mother and 60-year-old husband later died of injuries they sustained in the crash.

At his initial appearance in court, Cacic said he felt responsible and expressed regret, but rejected the charge that he had driven too fast, claiming that visibility had been poor.