[앵커]
Although the Yoon Chang-ho Act, which strengthens the punishment for drunk driving, is being implemented, drunk driving has not been eradicated.
It is pointed out that the punishment received by perpetrators is still low compared to the pain suffered by victims of drunk driving. Would it be any different if a law was implemented prohibiting those who drink alcohol from getting behind the wheel?
JCN Ulsan Central Broadcasting Reporter Jeon Dong-heun reports.
[기자]
Last April, a woman in her 20s on her way to work was hit and killed by a car driven by a man in his 20s who had been drinking until dawn.
The male perpetrator was sentenced to 10 years in prison in the first trial under the so-called Yoon Chang-ho Act.
It fell far short of the 20 years in prison requested by the prosecution.
[유족 : 왜 10년밖에 안 주는 거야, 왜 10년밖에 안 주는 거야]
In September 2020, a man who killed a 6-year-old child while driving while drunk in broad daylight in Hongeun-dong, Seoul, was sentenced to 8 years in prison for both the first and second trials.
[유족 / (2021년 4월 26일) : 아이 삶에 대해서 너무 (형량이) 적게 나온 거지만, 다른 음주 사건이 났을 때는 꼭 강한 처벌을 부탁 드리겠습니다.]
The Yoon Chang-ho Act is in effect, which allows for a maximum sentence of life imprisonment if a person dies while drunk driving, but the actual punishment rarely exceeds 8 years in prison.
Some point out that the sentencing standards themselves are distant from the public’s feelings about the law.
[변준석 / 변호사 : 법원도 대법원에서 양형 기준을 마련해서 그 양형 기준에 부합하게 선고를 하는 경향이 큰데 대법원 양형 기준도 보면 국민 정서와 부합하지 않게 낮게 범위가 설정된 경우가 상당히 많이 있는 게 지금 현실이죠.]
Moreover, the number of cases of drunk driving caught increased again after it was decided that some provisions of the Yoon Chang-ho Act, which included aggravated punishment for those caught drunk driving more than twice, were unconstitutional.
Although related laws are being revised one after another, public opinion remains that the punishment for drunk driving should be further strengthened.
[이송주 / 남구 신정동 : 처벌이 약하면 재발의 위험이 있기 때문에 초범일 때 이런 살인 행위가 멈출 수 있도록 강력한 처벌을 원합니다.]
Finally, an amendment to the Road Traffic Act that would prevent cars from starting when habitual drunk drivers drink alcohol was recently passed in the plenary session of the National Assembly.
The changed law is scheduled to go into effect around October next year, and attention is being paid to whether it will be effective in eradicating drunk driving.
Over the past five years, more than 1,300 people have lost their lives due to drunk driving.
It seems necessary to take fundamental measures to prevent drunk driving along with strong punishment.
This is Jeon Dong-heun of JCN News.
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2023-10-21 17:23:00
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