Court sentences alcohol-impaired driver over cyclist’s death

An alcohol-impaired driver was sentenced to 14 months in prison, with 10 months suspended, after a cyclist died in a crash in Pressbaum, Lower Austria, ORF reported. The 57-year-old was convicted of grossly negligent homicide at the St. Pölten regional court on Wednesday. The verdict is not legally binding.

The man was accused of hitting the 37-year-old cyclist with a panel van in November 2025. She fell onto the B44 and was then trapped beneath a car. Emergency services were unable to save her.

The defendant admitted the offence. He said he had drunk two or three beers with friends the day before the crash and had felt normal when he got up at about 1 a.m. on 17 November.

At about 6 a.m., while making a delivery in darkness, drizzle and poor visibility, he failed to see the cyclist, who apparently intended to turn left. The impact threw her into the opposite lane. Despite a 19-year-old driver braking hard, she became trapped beneath the car and died. An autopsy found multiple traumatic injuries.

Police measured the defendant’s blood alcohol level at 0.5 parts per thousand nearly an hour after the crash. An expert said that reading was not consistent with the amount of alcohol he reported drinking. The expert instead estimated that the 57-year-old had consumed between 2.5 and 4.5 litres of beer the previous day.

“I am truly very sorry,” the defendant, who is from the Horn district, told the court. He said he had not realised that alcohol remained in his system. The man has been unemployed since the crash and was not represented by a lawyer.

The cyclist, who was from the St. Pölten district, was wearing a high-visibility vest and helmet, and her bicycle’s front and rear lights were switched on. According to an expert report, the van driver had nearly four seconds to react and could have stopped in time.

Proceedings against the 19-year-old car driver were discontinued. He and his passenger also testified that visibility had been poor and there had been light fog.

The court awarded 5,000 euros each to the defendant and the deceased woman’s two sons, and 2,500 euros to her mother. The remaining claims were referred to civil proceedings.

The defendant appealed the verdict in full, while the public prosecutor appealed against the sentence. The representative of the private parties made no statement. The verdict is therefore not legally binding.