Overview

• On Tuesday, the Norderstedt district court convicted the 42-year-old of negligent homicide and negligent bodily harm and imposed a 14-month term on probation.
• The defendant confessed in court, apologized to the victim's parents, and said, "I know that I am guilty."
• Prosecutors had sought a four-month driving ban, which the court rejected, citing his roughly €800 income and status as a family breadwinner.
• According to testimony and an expert report, he used his phone as a navigation device and tried to plug in a charger at about 120 km/h, reacting only with a brief steering movement before striking a traffic jam near Alveslohe on March 10, 2024.
• The crash fatally injured a 30-year-old in her seventh month of pregnancy, her baby was stillborn a day later, and three others were hurt; the decision is not yet final and can be appealed within a week.