Chiara Adornoan 18-year-old student of Biological Sciences, was hit and killed last November 7, 2023 while crossing on the pedestrian crossing of the ring road, near the Catania Polyclinic.
The girl, originally from Solarino, was in the company of her boyfriend, who was injured during the accident and helplessly witnessed a dramatic scene: the young woman was hit first by a scooter and then by a carsuffering fatal injuries.
The preliminary investigations conducted by the Catania Prosecutor’s Office have identified the two responsibleboth 27-year-old men. This is the motorcyclist on board the Honda SH scooter and the motorist driving a Fiat Punto.
We talk about it again because from the reconstruction carried out thanks to the technical reports a double chilling truth emerged: both they were traveling at speed excessive for that stretch of road. At the time of the impact, the motorcyclist was driving at around 72 kilometers per hour, well above the permitted limits, while the motorist was traveling at 85 kilometers per hour. Chiara, already on the ground after the first impact with the scooter, when the second car arrived and hit her again.
Not a distraction, but a conscious choice
Even more serious is the fact that the investigations have ascertained the reason why the motorist did not see Chiara’s body at the time of the accident. The man, according to what was reported by the Etna prosecutor’s office, was busy reading and responding to some messages on WhatsApp while he was driving.
A chilling detail that only reiterates once again the frequency with which drivers they underestimate the risks associated with using a smartphone while drivingoften with disastrous consequences.
Now the Catania Prosecutor’s Office will have to establish whether ask for the two suspects to be sent to trialan important step in the path of justice for the young Chiara Adorno and her family, who lost such a promising and dream-filled daughter in an avoidable tragedy.
And we cannot help but reflect on how the use of a cell phone while driving can no longer be “trivialized” as a simple distraction: it’s a choice aware of taking your eyes off the road to do something else. A choice that, as in this case, can kill.
Although these accidents are unfortunately frequent, the legal consequences they are still insufficient to discourage such behaviors. It’s time to increase penalties for those who use cell phones while driving, so that tragedies like Chiara’s do not happen again. Attention and responsibility on the road are unavoidable duties: violate them.
