The Jerusalem District Court sentenced driver Tariq Karad to six years in prison on charges of negligent manslaughter for a December 2019 traffic accident that killed 34-year-old Tziporah Rimel and her three-week-old infant daughter, Noam Rachel Rimel, according to Kan News and Israel National News.
The court additionally imposed a 15-year license suspension, conditional prison time, and ordered compensation to the victims' families. Karad was convicted on two counts of negligent homicide, each carrying a maximum sentence of 12 years.
The accident occurred on Route 45 near Ofer Prison in the West Bank on the night of December 4-5, 2019, when the Rimel family vehicle was stopped at a red light. According to the court judgment, Karad was driving at speeds between 140-145 kilometers per hour while conducting what police characterized as a "test drive" of his recently purchased Volkswagen with manual transmission.
The court rejected the defense's claims that the accident resulted from a technical malfunction in the vehicle, concluding instead that excessive speed and Karad's reckless driving caused the collision. According to Times of Israel reporting, Karad had received his driver's license shortly before the accident and lacked significant experience driving manual transmission vehicles.
The force of Karad's impact propelled the Rimel family vehicle forward 35 meters, striking another vehicle in the process. Tziporah and Noam Rachel were pronounced dead at the scene. Tziporah's husband, Ephraim Rimel, 35, was left paralyzed from the waist down following the crash. Their 12-year-old son Itai suffered critical injuries and remained hospitalized in serious condition.
The prosecution had requested a 15-year sentence, arguing that Karad bore sole responsibility for the accident and demonstrated a dangerous disregard for public safety. The defense had sought only nine months of community service.
The family's response to the sentence was blunt. According to Israel National News, nearly 6.5 years after the fatal crash, the Rimel family stated: "It's a disgrace. Nothing else to say."
The case drew significant public attention, with neighbors from the Rimel family's hometown in Halamish initiating a crowdfunding campaign to support the family's medical expenses.
