A woman who fatally struck a horse sulky in Rabat has been spared jail after a court ruled that, although she had negligently caused a man's death, her driving did not amount to reckless or dangerous driving.
Gabriella Huhn Privitera was handed a two-year prison sentence suspended for four years after admitting to the involuntary homicide of Joseph Camilleri, who died when her Skoda Yeti collided with the back of a horse-drawn sulky on 11 March 2022.
The collision also injured Luciano Attard, who was travelling on the sulky alongside Camilleri.
Magistrate Nadine Sant Lia acquitted Privitera of three other charges, including causing grievous injuries to Attard, involuntary damage to property and reckless or dangerous driving.
Van obstructed driver's view before fatal collision
The court heard that Privitera was driving towards Rabat on the morning of the collision when she found herself following a large van that obstructed her view of the road ahead. The van moved into the opposite lane to overtake and Privitera suddenly found herself behind a slow-moving horse-drawn sulky.
She told the court she attempted to brake and manoeuvre around the sulky but was unable to avoid the collision.
The force of the collision threw both men from the sulky, while the two horses broke free and fled the scene.
Camilleri, who had been holding the reins, was thrown backwards, striking his head against Privitera's vehicle. Medico-legal expert Mario Scerri reported spinal injuries consistent with violent blunt-force trauma, which could have occurred when Camilleri fell from the sulky. He was pronounced dead at Mater Dei Hospital despite extensive attempts to resuscitate him.
Attard was also thrown from the sulky, sustaining injuries to his head and finger, extensive bruising to his back and abrasions. He told the court that he continued to experience numbness on the left side of his body following the accident, although the medical expert concluded that his injuries were not expected to leave lasting consequences.
Police officers described Privitera as being in a state of shock, crying and panicking immediately after the accident.
Driver was travelling within speed limit
Technical expert Mario Buttigieg estimated that Privitera had been travelling at approximately 35km/h, well within the road's 60km/h speed limit.
Although police initially suspected that she might have been using her mobile phone, subsequent investigations ruled this out. There was also no evidence that she had been driving under the influence of alcohol or other substances.
Position of sulky contributed to danger, court finds
Both Camilleri and Attard were travelling on the sulky, with Camilleri driving it while Attard held a second horse by a rope alongside it. The magistrate concluded that this arrangement meant the sulky was positioned further towards the centre of the carriageway, rather than closer to the roadside wall, restricting the space available for motorists to overtake safely.
The court found that the sulky's position had significantly contributed to creating the dangerous situation that ultimately resulted in the collision. It observed that the likelihood of an accident would have been substantially lower had only one person been using the sulky, allowing it to travel closer to the roadside.
However, the magistrate stressed that contributory negligence by another road user does not automatically absolve a driver of criminal responsibility.
The court also heard evidence from a Transport Malta representative that Camilleri held a permit to ride a horse but did not have the separate authorisation required to drive a horse-drawn sulky on public roads.
Two-year sentence suspended for four years
During proceedings, Privitera admitted to negligently causing Camilleri's death while contesting the remaining charges against her.
Regarding the charge of grievously injuring Attard, the court found that although he had sustained injuries in the collision, the medical evidence did not establish that they qualified as grievous under the law. The magistrate also considered the contribution of the sulky's position to the accident, ultimately acquitting Privitera of that charge.
She was also cleared of causing involuntary property damage because the prosecution had failed to adequately establish ownership of the damaged sulky or the value of the damage caused.
In assessing the dangerous driving charge, the magistrate concluded that the collision resulted from a moment of indecision when confronted with an unexpected situation, rather than conduct that met the legal threshold for reckless or dangerous driving. The court considered that Privitera had been following a large vehicle obstructing her visibility and had attempted to avoid the collision when the sulky appeared ahead of her.
When determining punishment, the court considered the seriousness of the offence, Privitera's relatively clean criminal record and her guilty plea, although the admission had been made at an advanced stage of proceedings.
The magistrate concluded that a custodial sentence was appropriate but that sufficient grounds existed to suspend its execution.
Privitera was consequently sentenced to two years' imprisonment suspended for four years. She was also disqualified from driving for one year and ordered to pay €6,186.45 in court expert expenses within two years.
Inspector Godwin Scerri prosecuted, while lawyer Gianella De Marco represented the accused.