The ruling on a man leading the prayer who killed two men by mistake

Question:
This is a letter we received from a brother from Algeria who works in France; he has abbreviated his name to B. He says in his letter: We have an imam of a large mosque in western Algeria who was involved in a car accident. He was driving himself with two men with him, and he wanted to overtake a car in front of him, so he hit that car from behind, and the two men with him died, while he survived because he was on the left side. He remained the imam after this incident. Does the saying of Allah the Exalted, to the end of the verse, apply to him, or is his killing here a mistake? And is it permissible to pray behind him?

Answer:
As long as he did not intend to kill himself or those with him, but rather intended to overtake them and ended up under the car, he is not intentional in this, and it falls under the category of killing by mistake. He owes the blood money and expiation, and there is no harm in praying behind him, because he did not intend the killing. However, the correct view is that the prayer behind a sinner is valid. If he had intended the killing, he would be a sinner who committed a great major sin, but he would not be a disbeliever if he did not consider it permissible. And whoever prays behind an open sinner, his prayer is valid according to the correct view. So if one prays behind a killer, or behind one who beats his parents, or behind one who committed unlawful sexual intercourse, or the like, the prayer is valid. But it should not be that they are appointed as imams if they are known for sins; rather, one should appoint someone known for justice and uprightness. However, if some people pray behind one who is known for open sinfulness, Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) prayed behind al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf al-Thaqafi, the governor of Iraq, who was among the most unjust and most sinful of people, and yet Ibn 'Umar prayed behind him. So the point is that the prayer behind an open sinner and an oppressor is valid, but it should not be that he is appointed as imam if there is the ability to do otherwise. One should seek a just man to lead the people when possible. Yes. May Allah bless you.