A jury trial opened in Girona this week over the death of a cyclist struck on October 30, 2021, on the GIV-6703 near the Santuari dels Àngels. D. C. V. is accused of driving under the influence, fatally hitting the cyclist and leaving without assisting her. The case involves the alleged dangerous driving and the separate question of whether those involved stopped to help after the collision.
Information from the prosecution, D. C. V. and passenger J. V. P. spent the night celebrating at the Fires de Girona and drank alcohol before setting off along a winding road used by cyclists. The Volkswagen Golf driven by D. C. V. struck a woman riding a bicycle on a stretch with a 40 km/h speed limit and signs warning of cyclists. The impact shattered the windshield and threw the cyclist over a guardrail, leaving her critically injured on a slope. Her bicycle became entangled in a tree.
Prosecutors allege that the two men continued for 2.4 kilometres without stopping, despite a damaged windshield and a blown front tire. They reportedly stopped in a restaurant car park to change the tire, then took a forest track in the opposite direction. A hunter who heard the crash found the cyclist and called emergency services. She was taken alive to Hospital Josep Trueta, where she later died from severe chest injuries.
At trial, D. C. V. denied realizing he had hit a person. As reported by the Catalan newspaper Empordà, he said he had “never thought” he had struck someone. The prosecution disputes that account, pointing to its allegations about the collision and the journey that followed. Police detained the suspects after the incident. A breath test attributed to D. C. V. at 8:57 a.m. recorded 0.92 milligrams of alcohol per litre of exhaled air, according to the prosecution.
For ordinary drivers in Spain, the traffic limit is 0.25 mg/l of exhaled air; novice and professional drivers face a lower limit of 0.15 mg/l. Spain’s criminal law separately sets an automatic threshold for the road-safety offence: a reading above 0.60 mg/l of exhaled air or above 1.2 grams per litre of blood. The alleged 0.92 mg/l reading is so more than three times the ordinary traffic limit and above the criminal threshold. The prosecution is seeking eight years in prison for D. C. V. on charges of endangering road safety and aggravated failure to render aid. J. V. P. faces a proposed fine of €5,475 over his alleged role in failing to assist the victim.
The cyclist was married and had a six-year-old son, who has since needed ongoing psychological support. Her family is seeking €250,000 in compensation for the child in a civil claim against Allianz, the insurer. The jury is expected to consider the criminal and civil claims. The trial is scheduled to continue through Friday.
The proceedings have renewed attention on risks to cyclists on Catalan roads, including winding routes popular with recreational riders. The case also shows the distinction between responsibility for causing a collision and the duty to assist an injured person afterward. The jury will assess the allegations. For related coverage, see the report on the Lleida bus accident.
