Lod Court Sentences Driver to 15 Months for Fatal Sde Warburg Crash
The Central District Court in Lod sentenced 21-year-old Kamar Kassem to 15 months in prison for causing the death of 18-year-old Nikita Khudozhnik in a high-speed collision.
More than three years after a fatal collision in Sde Warburg that claimed the life of 18-year-old Nikita Khudozhnik, the Central District Court in Lod has sentenced 21-year-old Kamar Kassem to 15 months in prison and an eight-year driving ban.
Kassem was convicted, in accordance with her confession to an amended indictment, of causing death by negligence. According to the court records, the incident occurred during evening hours on Route 554. Kassem was driving a Toyota at a speed of 119 km/h in an urban area where the speed limit is 50 km/h, eventually accelerating to 126 km/h as she approached an intersection.
At the same time, Nikita Khudozhnik was riding a scooter and stopped at a red light, intending to turn left. As the traffic light turned green for him, he entered the intersection. Kassem crossed the stop line at 120 km/h as her light turned red, striking the side of the scooter and causing it to catch fire. Khudozhnik sustained severe injuries and was pronounced dead hours later at the hospital.
Legal Arguments and Sentencing
The prosecution argued that Kassem's negligence was exceptionally high, noting that she attempted to "beat" the red light despite optimal road conditions and a clear field of vision exceeding 400 meters. The state requested a prison sentence ranging from 24 to 36 months, alongside a lengthy driving disqualification.
Defense attorneys emphasized Kassem's youth—she was 18 and nine months old at the time of the crash—and described the incident as a poor momentary judgment rather than reckless homicide. They highlighted her lack of prior criminal or traffic records, her work as a kindergarten assistant, and her expressed remorse.
"The day of the accident changed my life and the lives of both families," Kassem told the court, apologizing to the victim's family and asking for leniency.
Senior Judge Michal Brant ruled that the degree of negligence was notably high. "The defendant drove at more than double the permitted speed, exceeding 120 km/h in an urban area, crossed the intersection on a red light, and thereby ended the life of Nikita," the judge wrote.
The court sentenced Kassem to 15 months of actual imprisonment, six months of suspended prison time, an eight-year license revocation, and ordered her to pay 30,000 NIS in compensation to the victim's family.
