A San Pedro resident, Eladio Balam, pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of causing death by careless conduct in the accidental death of an eight-year-old boy. In May 2007, 45-year-old Eladio Balam, accidentally reversed his Bobcat tractor into Jose Raudeles who was walking his bicycle from school on his way home.
On Friday, February 26, Balam, who had initially been indicted for manslaughter by negligence and causing death by careless conduct pleaded guilty to the charge. He was fined $8,000 by the court and was ordered to pay $10,000 to the family of the deceased. In mitigation plea before Justice Michelle Arana, two character witnesses spoke on Balam’s behalf. Before passing her ruling Justice Arana said that by law, the offence carries a maximum of two years; however, based on testimony by the character witnesses and the fact that he assisted the little boy after he was knocked down she would not send him to jail. (News source: Channel 5) Picture included
San Pedro Police Detained Driver in Fatal Traffic Accident
On May 17, 2007, it was a beautiful day that turned out to become a tragic one for Graciela Santos as her only son, eight year old Jose Raudalez, was involved in a traffic accident that took him away from her.
San Pedro Police have detained Eladio Balam, the driver of a construction vehicle (Bobcat) that was involved in a traffic accident that left the San Pedro R.C. school student dead with injuries to the head. Forty two year old Eladio Balam, of the San Juan area in San Pedro Town, reported to Police that sometime around 11a.m. on Thursday, May 17, 2007, he was driving a Bobcat on the alleyway that separates the San Pedro Roman Catholic School and the Sunbreeze Hotel in the airstrip area when a small child on a bicycle attempted to overtake the vehicle.
According to Balam, the alleyway in which he was traveling was narrow and the child’s bicycle handle touched against a wall causing him to lose control. As a result, the child fell and hit his head against a steel portion of the vehicle and was rendered unconscious. The young child was transported to the Lion’s Clinic but was pronounced dead on arrival. The post mortem results indicated that Jose died of Trauma Shock due to chest injuries as a result of the accident.
