Tunisian jailed for heroin-induced car accident that left passenger wheelchair-bound

Faisal Mahouachi had strayed into the opposing lane before crashing into a gatepost whilst driving back home from detox, severely injuring his passenger

15 years after he caused an accident that left a woman brain damaged and unable to walk, Tunis-born Faisal Mahouachi has been sentenced to two years' imprisonment, after a court declared him responsible for the crash.

Mahouachi, who is currently also awaiting trial for the 2005 murder of male prostitute Simon Grech, had been behind the wheel of his friend Sharon Pace's parents' Fiat Bravo on their way back from the Detox centre, both of them having been administered methadone.

The car had collided with a gatepost on the right hand side of the road. The Fiat, bought just two years before the accident, had been written off in the crash.

Pace had been a passenger at the time as methadone would make her drowsy and is now confined to a wheelchair, having suffered brain damage in the impact. She is unlikely to work again and has experienced personality changes as a result of the brain injury.

Traces of heroin, as well as methadone, were found in samples taken from the Tunisian, implying that he had abused the substance shortly before taking methadone. The defence had argued that Pace had been aware that the accused had been under the influence of drug and had tacitly accepted the risks of letting him drive her home, but the court had not accepted this argument, citing the 2015 judgement by the First Hall of the Civil Court in Xerri vs Xuereb, which had established that the mere fact of a driver's intoxication did not automatically imply that his passengers were aware of his condition.

The absence of characteristic bruising patterns led Mahouachi to also be found guilty of not wearing a seat belt whilst at the wheel.

There was little doubt that he had been taking heroin at the time, this having emerged in toxicological testing.

The defence contested the charge of relapsing, arguing that no police officer had been summoned to confirm the authenticity of his criminal record. After noting the matching details and ID card number, Magistrate Marse Anne Farrugia held that this had been sufficiently proven however.

Passing sentence on the accused, the court pointed out that Mahouachi was a recidivist several times over and had frittered away the many opportunities handed to him by the courts to get his life on track. Conditional discharges, probation orders and a suspended sentence had all failed to impress the need for change in the accused.

The court handed Mahouachi to two years imprisonment and disqualified him from driving for one year after his release. He was also ordered to pay the costs of the case.