No charges for woman who killed handbag robber with car

A woman who chased down two men who had stolen her bag, running over one of them and killing him, has been released after being interviewed by police.

María L. R., 32, is to appear before magistrates at a later date, where it will be decided if she should face any charges. In the meantime, homicide detectives assigned to the case, in collaboration with local police, consider the incident “a traffic accident.” If the judge decides that no further action should be taken, the woman will be fined for a traffic misdemeanor.

The incident occurred at about 3pm Monday in the northern Madrid suburb of Montecarmelo. According to police sources, two men on a motorbike had stolen María L. R.’s handbag and fled.

The woman, in a Seat Ibiza, pursued her assailants, who were seen by witnesses to lose control of the bike on a sharp corner and crash into some garbage bins. María L. R.’s car followed behind on the turn and hit one of the men, killing him instantly. The other fled into a nearby park. The police accepted that María L. R. hit the man “accidentally, due to the momentum” of her car.