Child Fell Out of Bus While Moving: How the Court Punished the Vehicle Driver
The Khmelnytskyi Court of Appeal rejected the appeal filed by the defender of the route bus driver, who was deprived of the right to drive vehicles for six months by the court of first instance for violating traffic rules. This was reported by the Khmelnytskyi Court of Appeal.
The accident occurred on May 4, 2026, in the city of Kamianets-Podilskyi: during passenger disembarkation, the driver did not ensure a complete stop of the bus, did not engage the parking brake, and as a result, the vehicle began to move on its own. At that moment, a child fell out of the bus, sustaining minor bodily injuries and damage to clothing.
The Kamianets-Podilskyi City District Court of Khmelnytskyi region found the minibus driver guilty of an administrative offense under Article 124 of the Code of Administrative Offenses and imposed an administrative penalty in the form of deprivation of the right to drive vehicles for six months.
The driver’s defender filed an appeal requesting to change the ruling and impose a fine instead of revoking the driver’s license.
In his opinion, the local court did not fully consider that the driver is a person with a group III disability, admitted guilt, sincerely repented, and apologized to the representative of the victim. He also noted that passenger transportation is his only source of income, and revoking his driving rights could disrupt the regular operation of the bus route due to a shortage of drivers under martial law conditions.
The Court of Appeal agreed with the local court’s conclusion on the necessity to apply the penalty of deprivation of the right to drive vehicles for six months.
The court noted that the court of first instance took into account both the fact that the driver is a person with a group III disability and has dependents, as well as the fact that he was repeatedly held administratively liable for traffic violations and did not attempt to reconcile with the injured party.
It also pointed out that merely acknowledging the facts does not indicate admission of guilt or sincere remorse. According to the mother of the injured child, after the incident, the driver did not apologize but behaved arrogantly and mocked her daughter.
The Court of Appeal also rejected arguments that revoking the driver’s license would deprive him of his only source of income and affect the operation of the bus route.
The court stated that such circumstances do not outweigh the purpose of the administrative penalty and cannot negate the increased duty of the route vehicle driver to ensure passenger safety. The consequences of applying the penalty for the offender’s professional activity or his employer are not grounds for imposing a milder penalty.
The full text of the Court of Appeal’s ruling in case No. 676/3887/26 will be available in the Unified State Register of Court Decisions.
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