Styrian man convicted of coercion: sick cat sparks road-rage incident
A 66-year-old pensioner from Styria faced Graz Regional Criminal Court after harassing and hitting another motorist on the way to a veterinarian.
Court convicts pensioner following incident with sick cat in car
A 66-year-old Styrian man has been found guilty of coercion and assault at Graz Regional Criminal Court. According to Kleine Zeitung, the pensioner harassed another motorist over several kilometres during summer on the way to a veterinarian and hit him on a motorway slip road.
The defendant told judge Julia Noack that his cat may have been poisoned. "Our tomcat was poisoned three years ago. I thought the same thing had happened to our current cat. I had to get her to the doctor quickly." On a narrow road, he allegedly drove close behind the vehicle in front for kilometres, while according to his own account he looked at the cat on the passenger seat and petted it around 200 times.
The harassed driver eventually stopped and wanted to clarify the incident. During this, the defendant allegedly hit him with his vehicle. The pensioner denied this in court: "He got out, came to me and wanted to know what was going on. Then he threw himself down – that was a complete tumble, I didn't even touch him with the car." When the judge pointed out that the other driver had spent 19 days on sick leave, the defendant seemed unimpressed: "Well, I can always go to hospital and say everything hurts."
His defence lawyer acknowledged the unusual situation with dry humour: "Technically, the cat sitting in the passenger seat is to blame. But I can't say that because my client is the defendant."
Judge Noack conveyed a clear message at the end of proceedings: "The other road user doesn't know anything about the cat – you simply cannot behave that way in traffic." When asked how future incidents could be prevented, the defendant initially responded laconically: "Lock me up. 20 years. No, joking."
The verdict: guilty of coercion and assault, a fine of 720 euros (immediate), four months' imprisonment (suspended) and 200 euros compensation to the injured driver.
After the hearing, the two men shook hands. However, the final reconciliation was not without further dispute – the other driver asked the defendant why he had driven so far when a veterinarian lived right in his neighbourhood. His response: "Well, I don't go to him."
The health of both man and animal has since improved: the injured motorist's knees have healed, and the cat too is reportedly doing better.
Source: Kleine Zeitung