Mons, Belgium: A Belgian driver went on trial Monday accused of murdering seven people by ploughing his car into a carnival procession in a high-profile case that shocked the country.
Paolo Falzone faces up to 30 years in jail for the deadly crash in March 2022. Investigators said he was driving home from a club at 120 kilometres (75 miles) per hour over the speed limit one Sunday morning at around 5:00 am.
Dressed in black trousers and jacket, Falzone appeared at a court hearing in Mons, southern Belgium, attended by survivors and relatives of the victims.
"We've finally made it. We're going to stand together, we're going to be strong together to get through this ordeal," Florian Devise, who suffered a serious head injury in the crash, told reporters before the trial.
Prosecutors say the tragedy happened as Falzone, who had previous traffic offences such as speeding and drink driving, gunned his BMW at 170 kilometres an hour through a 50 kilometre zone on the outskirts of La Louviere.
They say he was unaware that revellers dressed in costumes for a traditional carnival parade were gathered just ahead.
Six people died instantly and emergency workers treated around 40 wounded scattered across several hundred metres. Another victim died later.
As the investigation progressed, it determined that Falzone was filming a social media post and not looking at the road at the time of the crash.
'Secure justice'
Falzone faces seven charges of murder and 81 of attempted murder. A passenger in Falzone's car at the time of the crash will stand trial on allegations he failed to help people in danger and faces up to two years in jail.
In a rare move for a road incident, an appeals court ordered the trial to take place in front of a jury, in part due to the level of public outrage.
The trial is being heard in a special hall to accommodate nearly 200 civil parties taking part. The civil claimants include some who are disabled for life and the relatives of those who died.
Among them is Lorena Cascarano, who lost both her parents in the incident.
"We are going to fight to represent our loved ones who are no longer here to do so, and to secure justice for them," the 27-year-old student told AFP.
"I was an only child, the three of us did everything together," she added, referring to her parents Michelina and Vito. "I'm still struggling to come to terms, just as I was four years ago, utterly devastated."
The crash was so violent that two victims smashed through the windscreen. Another rolled off the bonnet and was then run over by the car.
The investigation found that it took Falzone more than a kilometre to come to a stop.
The trial is expected to last at least six weeks and will see 278 people give evidence.
Falzone's lawyer has protested against the harshness of the charges.
"The case file shows that this isn't the first time he's driven completely irresponsibly. He admits it. But he never intended to kill," lawyer Frank Discepoli told AFP.
But Jean Philippe Mayence, representing more than 100 civil claimants, said he would reject defence claims of simple carelessness.
"I cannot conceive that you run someone over, that you drive over them, that you keep going, and then come and say it was unintentional -- it's untenable!" the lawyer said.
"I'm not really expecting to hear an apology," said Lorena Cascarano. "But explanations -- yes."
