Blood Alcohol Concentration 0.290%... License Cancellation Level
Habitual Drunk Driving and Unlicensed Driving for 20 Years from 20s
A man in his 40s who was arrested for driving under the influence again and causing a traffic accident despite having been punished nine times in the past for drunk driving or driving without a license has been detained.
The Chuncheon Police Station in Gangwon Province arrested Mr. A (49) on charges including reckless driving causing injury under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes, according to Yonhap News Agency on the same day. On the 1st at around 8:50 p.m., Mr. A ran a red light at the Gongdan Five-way Intersection in Hupyeong-dong, Chuncheon City, Gangwon Province, and collided with another vehicle that was passing through the intersection on a green light. The driver of the other vehicle sustained injuries requiring about two weeks of treatment. The police measured Mr. A’s blood alcohol concentration and found it to be 0.290%, far exceeding the license cancellation threshold of 0.08%. It was reported that Mr. A was so intoxicated at the time of the accident that he could not even remember driving.
The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. Police are conducting a drunk driving checkpoint near an elementary school in Seoul. Photo by Heo Younghan younghan@
Moreover, Mr. A had a history of being punished nine times for drunk driving and driving without a license. He had driven even after his license was canceled due to drunk driving and had driven under the influence without a license. Mr. A started drunk driving in his twenties and had habitually driven under the influence for 20 years. Despite this behavior, he had only received lenient punishments such as fines or suspended prison sentences, which ultimately led to him causing a drunk driving accident.
Meanwhile, punishments for habitual drunk drivers like Mr. A have been strengthened recently.
On the 29th of last month, the Hwacheon Police Station in Gangwon Province booked a man in his 40s, Mr. B, without detention on charges of drunk driving. Mr. B had been punished five times in the past for drunk driving. He was caught driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.149% in Hwacheon-eup, Hwacheon-gun, Gangwon Province on the 2nd of last month. His vehicle was also confiscated.
In addition, in May, a man in his 60s who had been punished six times for drunk driving caused an accident while driving under the influence again and was sentenced to prison despite the victim’s request for leniency. At that time, the Chuncheon District Court dismissed the appeal of Mr. C, a man in his 60s charged with drunk driving under the Road Traffic Act and reckless driving causing death or injury under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes, and upheld the original sentence of one year and six months in prison. He was prosecuted for colliding with a stopped vehicle in Wonju, Gangwon Province, in May last year while driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.134%, causing injuries requiring about three weeks of treatment to the driver of the other vehicle. The first trial court sentenced him to prison, stating, “Despite having six prior punishments for drunk driving, Mr. C drove under the influence again.”
On the 15th, a man in his 50s who had been punished six times for drunk driving was sentenced to a heavier prison term in the appellate court than in the original trial after driving under the influence again. The Criminal Division 5 of Changwon District Court (Presiding Judge Kim Hyung-hoon) overturned the original sentence (one year and six months in prison with three years of probation) and sentenced Mr. D, in his 50s, to one year in prison for violating the Road Traffic Act. He was immediately detained after the sentence.
Mr. D was tried for driving about 1 km on a road in Gimhae City, Gyeongsangnam-do, in April last year while intoxicated. At the time of detection, Mr. D’s blood alcohol concentration was 0.067%, which is at the license suspension level. He had previously been punished six times in total, including four fines and two suspended prison sentences for drunk driving. The first trial court considered that “he reflected on his crime and that his blood alcohol concentration was not very high at the time” and sentenced him to a suspended prison term. The prosecution appealed, arguing that the sentence was too light and unfair. The appellate court explained the reason for the prison sentence, stating, “The defendant committed the crime again within 10 years from the date the sentence of a fine or higher for drunk driving was finalized. Despite having multiple punishments for the same type of crime, he committed the crime again, which shows a high possibility of blame and risk of recidivism.”
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