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Jeers and scuffles as trial of 2013 Spanish train disaster that killed 80 begins

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A Spanish train driver was charged with causing the train accident that killed 80 people. On Wednesday (5 October), a protester kicked one of the defendants outside of the courtroom.

Another 145 people were also injured in the worst rail accident the country has seen in decades. The eight-carry, high-speed Alvia 04155 train, which was eight carriages long, spun off the track near Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain. It crashed into a concrete wall, and burst into flames.

The Rail Accident Investigation Commission is part of the Transport Ministry and concluded that Francisco Jose Garzon was speeding at the scene, and was distracted by a call from a superior.

The Association of Victims of Alvia 04155 is one of the two organizations representing the victims. They blame not only human error, but also the security system of the railway.

Garzon's lawyer said on Wednesday to reporters that there were safety problems on the railway. Adif's former head for traffic safety, Andres Kortabitarte did not comment on the matter. In 2018, he told a 2018 parliamentary commission that he wasn't responsible for the safety on the line.

Kortabitarte was punched in the back by one of the protesters as he was being escorted to police by officers. He was also jeered at by the bereaved families of the accident victims.

Television footage showed the aggressor being removed by a policeman outside Santiago de Compostela's Galicia courtroom, in Spain's northwest.

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Both defendants face four years imprisonment and having their professions disqualified. The charges include 80 counts of gross professional negligence manslaughter, 145 offenses of injury and one count of damages.

Members of the association protested earlier this week in Madrid in support of justice.

"There are people who have died, and they are not here anymore. They will never see justice," Jesus Dominguez, a spokesman for the national broadcaster TVE, stated Wednesday just before the trial began.

The proceedings will last for months at a cultural center in Santiago de Compostela. More than 700 witnesses and experts are expected to testify.

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