"Beat & Release": Woman, Badly Hurt in Crash of Racing Cars, Held Partially at Fault as a Passenger (!), in Mersin

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 26 August 2023)

         "Should I have jumped from the speeding car?!" 

Yaren Gürbüz (25) was living in America when, at the beginning of 2021,

she came to visit her family in Mersin.  The COVID pandemic restrictions

at that time prevented her from returning to the USA. As a result, on 

12 March she was involved in a traffic accident that would end her fairy 

tale life. 

That day, Yaren hanım went out driving with her friend Emir Kuytul, 

who began racing with another car but crashed into a TIR (tractor-trailer) 

making an illegal U-turn.   As a result of the crash, Yaren hanım's nose,

jaw, teeth, hip, knee, thigh bone, right heel, spine and shoulder blade 

were broken. (!)  After two months of treatment, Yaren hanım lost the use

of an eye, as well.  Bones from her chest were used to repair her nose.

Since she has had to remain in Turkey all this time, Yaren hanım's U.S.

"green card" has been canceled.  As she continues with her medical 

treatment, Yaren hanım filed a compensation case in Istanbul, including

a doctor's report verifying that she is now 85% disabled, demanding

1 million TL (about $3.6) in material damages and 150,000 TL (about

$5,600) in psychological damages from the three drivers who were 

involved and their insurance companies. 

                                    The Three Stooges

An "expert witness" report was submitted to the court by academics

from the Istanbul Technical University's Engineering Faculty.  The 

report's findings cited TIR driver İsa Ataman as being 50% at fault

in the accident for making an illegal U-turn and drivers Emir Kuytul

and Alparslan Bayundur each bearing 25% responsibility for the 

crash because they were racing. 

Additionally, according to the report, Yaren hanım shared 20% of

Kuytul's fault because she was a passenger in one of the racing cars 

and put her own life in danger by choosing to be in the car (!).   

Her lawyer Mecit Kahraman has refused to accept this 20% fault 

attributed to Yaren hanım and has demanded another "expert witness" 

report from another committee. 

In response to the "expert witness" report, Yaren hanım lamented: 

"How can I be held to be at fault for being a passenger in the car?!

Should I have jumped from the speeding car?! Would they ("expert

witness" committee) have been happy then?!  I have no memory of

the incident but the report confirmed that they were racing with each

other.  And because of their recklessness, they put my life in danger.

They stole my life from me.  I'm still getting treatment and undergoing

operations.  I cannot work.  They must be punished for this so they 

don't put the lives of others in danger and they must be made to pay

compensation."