Overview
- The jury found Ashenafei Demissie not guilty of causing death and serious injury by careless driving after roughly five hours of deliberation.
- Prosecutors’ crash expert concluded the collision was caused by pedal misapplication, while Demissie consistently denied pressing the accelerator.
- The 25 November 2022 incident in a Borough, south London, residents’ car park killed five-year-old Fareed Amir, seriously injured Demissie’s 12-year-old son, and damaged five parked cars.
- Met Police investigator Mark Still said he found no defect that would make the car move without driver input and acknowledged he is not a software engineer.
- The court was not told that post-publicity, about a dozen EV drivers contacted lawyers with concerns about similar vehicles, and the judge thanked Fareed’s family for their dignity as Demissie wept after the verdict.