In June 2007, on a road in Copacabana (Antioquia), a driver lost control of his car, went onto the shoulder and hit a pedestrian, who died.
The criminal judge acquitted the driver of negligent homicide because there were doubts about how the accident happened. Based on that acquittal, the civil courts in Medellín denied the family's compensation claim.
What the Supreme Court decided
On March 7, 2019, in ruling SC665-2019, the Civil Chamber overturned that decision and held the driver and the car's owner jointly liable. It ordered them to pay the widow:
- COP 669,773,110 in lost income (what the family stopped receiving and will stop receiving).
- COP 60,000,000 in moral damages.
- COP 30,000,000 for loss of enjoyment of life.
The vehicle's insurer must also pay the widow directly, up to the insured amount.
Why it matters
Driving is a dangerous activity under Colombian law. Whoever drives is liable for the harm caused unless they prove an outside cause: force majeure, the victim's sole fault or a third party's act.
A criminal acquittal based on doubt does not bind the civil judge. The criminal case asks whether there was a crime; the civil case asks whether the harm must be repaired. They are different questions.
What it means if something similar happened to you
The fact that the driver was not convicted does not close the door to a compensation claim. What does matter are the deadlines to sue and the evidence of the accident: the traffic report, witnesses, photos and medical records.
Sources
- Corte Suprema de Justicia, sentencia SC665-2019 (7 de marzo de 2019)
- Corte Suprema de Justicia, comunicado (22 de julio de 2019)
- El Tiempo (27 de mayo de 2019)
This is a summary of public news written by García & Asociados Abogados for informational purposes. Every case depends on its own facts and evidence: it doesn’t mean another case will have the same outcome.
Photo: Front of the Palace of Justice in Bogotá, seat of Colombia's Supreme Court — Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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