The Milan Prosecutor's Office has decided to ask the investigating judge to carry out a "cinematic expert assessment" in an evidentiary accident "aimed at reconstructing the exact dynamics" of the accident that killed Ramy Elgaml on November 24, 2024. This decision comes after prosecutors had already closed the road homicide investigation against Fares Bouzidi, the 19-year-old's friend who was driving the scooter, and the Carabiniere who was driving the last pursuing car.
The expert witnesses' reports, in fact, "reaching divergent conclusions on several essential aspects of the incident," the prosecutors write, "do not allow for a univocal reconstruction."
Prosecutors Giancarla Serafini and Marco Cirigliano of the Prosecutor's Office headed by Marcello Viola explain in their application to the investigating judge—who will have to allow the preliminary investigation and appoint third-party experts—"that, given the unique and sensitive nature of the case," it appears "necessary to expertly ascertain the exact circumstances of the road accident that led to the death." This is because, after having examined the "public prosecutor's report and its supplementation" and those "of the suspects and the injured party," the investigators believe that the "diverging conclusions on several essential aspects of the incident do not allow for a univocal reconstruction."
In the report and in an additional document, engineer Domenico Romaniello, appointed by the prosecutors, essentially wrote that Bouzidi was solely responsible for the accident, while the Carabiniere had behaved appropriately.
According to the expert, at a certain point, the officer found the scooter in his path and couldn't steer left or right, otherwise he would have hit either the motorcycle or a pedestrian. He attempted to brake, according to the report in the case file, but at that point it was impossible to avoid the collision and the final crash of the two vehicles into a traffic light pole. This opinion is essentially in line with that of the Carabiniere's defense and in conflict with that of the experts appointed by the lawyers of Fares and Ramy's family.
However, the prosecutors, not following their consultant's report, closed the investigation into vehicular homicide against the Carabiniere in July, highlighting in the indictment the issue of the "unsuitable" distance—less than 1.5 meters—the officer maintained, having been too close to the motorcycle before the collision at the intersection of Via Ripamonti and Via Quaranta. And the same prosecutors, after closing the investigation, decided to interview Romaniello before finalizing the case. They now explain in the document that an expert report could yield "fundamental elements for the prosecution based on a reasonable expectation of conviction against those responsible for Elgaml Ramy's death." Essentially, this could help prosecutors determine whether to seek vehicular homicide trials for both suspects.
The expert, or more likely a panel of experts, will determine "whether the driving behavior of the parties involved in the accident complied with the principles of diligence and prudence as well as the provisions of the Highway Code." If "one or more negligent acts are identified, they must specify whether these constituted causal antecedents to the occurrence of the damaging event." And "finally, they must report any other circumstances useful in determining the dynamics of the accident."
The prosecutors' request will have to be approved by the investigating judge, a step that seems obvious in a case like this. The judge will then have to appoint his own experts and formulate the question, setting a deadline for the submission of the report. The outcome of the expert report, which could take 90 days, will therefore not be available before early next year.
(Unioneonline)