HIBAPRESS – Abdellatif Baraka
The Court of Cassation corrected a judicial trend issued by the Court of First Instance in Ouarzazate, which had considered that sending a photo of a speeding violation via the "WhatsApp" application deprives the inspection report of its legal value, and consequently ruled to invalidate the report and declare the driver's innocence.
The Court of Cassation's decision came to confirm that this interpretation is incorrect, because the essence of proof in speeding violations is based on technical inspection by devices that operate automatically, not on the means of transferring data between monitoring agents. The decision highlighted that the Traffic Code allows for the proof of speeding by approved radars, whether fixed or mobile, and that the data recorded by these devices are considered self-contained physical evidence, even if the report was prepared by an agent other than the one who was present at the time the violation was recorded. The court considered that linking the validity of the report to the presence of the same agent who inspected the violation or the method of transferring the photo violates the legal provisions governing technical inspection. The Court of Cassation stressed that the use of "WhatsApp" in the case was not a means of inspection, but merely a channel for transferring information to the monitoring elements at the judicial barrier, which does not affect the validity of the evidence if the approved radar is the basis of proof. By annulling the initial ruling in favor of the law without referral, the Court of Cassation has readjusted the correct legal rule, and established a clear precedent stating that the rejection of the means of transportation does not negate the legitimacy of the technical inspection and does not invalidate speeding violation reports when they meet their legal requirements.
