Accident in Pedrozo: "Responsibility is personal," clarifies lawyer

In the wake of tragic road accidents, such as the Pedrozo incident in Ypacaraí where a truck lost its brakes causing six fatalities, a Paraguayan penal lawyer has clarified the legal responsibility. José Ignacio González Macchi asserted that culpability for vehicular homicide rests solely with the individual involved in the accident.

"The responsibility is personal and affects the specific person involved in the accident, regarding the figure of culpable homicide," González Macchi explained. He further elaborated that even if a vehicle carrying excess weight caused a fatal accident after passing a weight control checkpoint, the authorities overseeing that checkpoint would not bear responsibility for the accident itself.

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The responsibility is personal and affects the specific person involved in the accident, regarding the figure of culpable homicide.

Instead, González Macchi noted, such authorities might face administrative liability for a failure in their control duties. "Objective imputation prevents us from establishing that. If someone killed a person, the father cannot be held responsible if the son killed someone," he illustrated, emphasizing the personal nature of criminal liability.

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If someone was responsible for controlling the load of that vehicle, they cannot be responsible for the improper driving of the driver who was carrying excess load and caused an accident.

He added, "If someone was responsible for controlling the load of that vehicle, they cannot be responsible for the improper driving of the driver who was carrying excess load and caused an accident." This distinction aims to isolate culpability to the direct actions leading to the fatal outcome.

The lawyer also addressed the legal implications of reaching compensation agreements with victims' families. He referred to the definitive dismissal of the Sanabria Vierci case, where an agreement was reached with some families. González Macchi stated that such agreements, if properly executed, allow for definitive dismissal according to the Penal Code, providing a form of restitution for those affected when the victim cannot be brought back to life.

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That agreement, if done correctly, allows for the definitive dismissal. That is a predisposition that is in the Penal Code.