Keywords: Legal reflections on drunk driving penalties
About the author: Cao Daqing, associate professor at the Party School of the Municipal Party Committee, is mainly engaged in legal teaching and scientific research.
Library of China Classification Number: D924 Document Identification Code: A Document Number: 1009-0592(2013)07-239-02
As we all know, drunk driving is a serious hazard to driving safety behavior. From a legal perspective, drunk driving is divided into drunk driving and drunk driving. The alcohol content in the blood of a drunk driver is greater than or equal to 20mg/100ml and less than 80mg/100ml; the blood alcohol content of a drunk driver is greater than or equal to 80mg/ml. From the 2009 Sun Weiming drunk driving case in Chengdu, Sichuan, to the subsequent BMW collision case, Land Rover collision case, Foshan drunk driving case, Nanjing 6.30 Zhang Mingbao case, etc. , murders, fresh lives, and broken families all started together, making people think about the problem of "drunk driving" in pain and lessons. On May 1, 2011, the 19th Session of the Standing Committee of the 11th National People's Congress voted to pass the "Amendment to the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China (Eight)", which was officially implemented. The crime of dangerous driving added in the eighth amendment included "drunk driving". criminal law. After drunk driving was punished, the public security organs launched a special campaign to combat drunk driving, and judicial organs convicted and sentenced drunk driving in accordance with the law. Under heavy fines, drunk driving has been curbed to a certain extent, and the number of drunk driving accidents has also been significantly reduced. However, drunk driving has always been coexisting with controversy from the day he was "imprisoned". As some problems have emerged in the two years since its implementation, the impact of this provision still requires in-depth consideration and summary.
1. The social harm of "drunk driving"
Drunk driving, speeding, overloading, unlicensed driving, and fatigue driving are known as the "five killers" on the road. Among the "Five Big Killers", drunk driving is the most lethal.
(1) Drunk driving is an important cause of a large number of traffic accidents.
According to traffic accident statistics provided by the Traffic Management Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security, traffic violations caused by drunk driving in the past five years have resulted in an average of 10,900 traffic accidents every year, with 4,054 deaths and 1.65, 438 0.60 injuries. Thousands of people are one of the important causes of traffic casualties. Because drinking alcohol will seriously affect driving behavior, it will reduce the driver's tactile ability, judgment ability and operating ability, cause visual impairment, psychological disorder and fatigue, and greatly increase the probability of traffic accidents during driving. Statistics show that drunk driving is 15 times more likely to cause an accident than usual, 30% of road traffic accidents are caused by drunk driving and drunk driving, and 59% of driver deaths are related to drunk driving. Scientific research has found that when a driver does not drink and drive, he sees dangerous situations ahead. The reaction time from visual perception to braking is 0.75 seconds. When he is still able to drive after drinking, his reaction time will be 2-3 times slower, and the braking distance at the same speed will be correspondingly extended, greatly increasing the possibility of an accident.
(2) The severity of drunk driving traffic accidents ranks first among all types of traffic accidents.
In 2008, approximately 18,371 people died, 76,230 were injured, and direct property losses were 250.25 million yuan. From January to August 2009, 3,206 accidents occurred, resulting in 1,302 deaths. Among them, 1,044 accidents were caused by drunk driving, resulting in 409 deaths. In the nationwide investigation and prosecution of drunk driving since August 15, 2009, in just 12 days, 25,765 illegal drunk driving offenses were investigated and dealt with nationwide, of which "drunk driving" accounted for 15.1% of the total. In 2010, 87,000 drunk driving cases were investigated and dealt with nationwide. Through a comparative analysis of the number of drunk driving traffic accidents and the number of casualties in the past five years, it can be seen that on average, 0.37 people died and 1.06 people were injured in each drunk driving traffic accident, that is, about 1 person died in every three accidents, ranking first among all types of traffic accidents. head.
Drunk driving seriously endangers traffic safety, endangers others and harms society, and must be strictly prohibited.
2. Reasons for repeated bans after "drunk driving"
Drunk driving not only threatens life and health, but also faces the risk of criminal liability, but why is it still repeated?
(1) Driving habits are deeply rooted
Data released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers on October 2002 11 show that in 2002, my country's automobile production and sales both exceeded 190,000 units, breaking the record again , with a growth rate of more than 4, ranking first in the world. As of the end of 2012, my country's car ownership reached 65,438 25 million vehicles, and our country has officially entered the automobile era. However, while we are enjoying the convenience brought by industrial civilization, we have not learned proper driving etiquette together, and the improvement of driver quality has not kept pace with the growth of wealth. At the beginning, we did not talk about road civilization. The windows are parabolic, making it difficult for people to drive. When turning right, we compete with pedestrians. I didn’t slow down when I saw the crossing line in front of the school and turned a blind eye to the students carrying schoolbags; on a rainy day, I saw the stagnant water still flying, splashing passersby with mud; changing lanes at will and blocking; there was a traffic jam in front, and the horn was honked desperately behind, etc. wait. , followed by traffic violations, such as not wearing seat belts, chatting and using mobile phones while driving. At the end of bad driving habits, it’s no surprise that people even dare to get behind the wheel while drunk.
(2) Misunderstanding of "Wine Culture"
Wine has a long history in China and has formed a "wine culture" with Chinese characteristics. As the saying goes, "No party is complete without wine." Wine interprets keywords such as face, loyalty, and generosity, and also interprets interpersonal connotations such as hospitality, favors, and relationships. Wine is an essential flavoring agent in many people's daily lives. On happy, sad, celebrating, grieving and other occasions. , it is inevitable to have a drink and vent. Drinking is also a form of communication. China has always been an "acquaintance society". Wine has become a medium for connecting and deepening feelings, sometimes directly determining the success or failure of certain projects and things. Therefore, drinking is inevitable in the process of interpersonal communication. If you have deep feelings, you will feel stuffy; if you have shallow feelings, just lick them; if a man doesn’t drink, his life in this world will be in vain; “I would rather have a hole in my stomach than a gap in my relationship” and so on. Encouraging wine is also very rich in Chinese wine culture. Inviting someone to drink without urging them to drink more is impolite and can make people think they are stingy. And if you don't drink when I advise you to drink, you will lose face and have no loyalty. It is the misunderstanding of "wine culture" that makes the increasingly affluent Chinese want to drink some wine to make themselves comfortable, but also want to change the drinking culture that encourages drinking, but find it difficult to refuse. Under the pressure of traditional culture, legal provisions prohibiting drunk driving are difficult to enforce.
(3) Luck is hard to overcome.
Many drunk drivers think they have good driving skills and strong control. Drinking a little alcohol is not harmful to driving safety, and they may even drive better than usual, but they are not fully aware of the adverse effects of drinking on driving behavior. A reporter once conducted a questionnaire survey on the topic of drunk driving. The results showed that 50% of the respondents were lucky about drunk driving, 56% were very confident in their drunk driving skills, and 32% said that "when drunk driving is inspected by the traffic police, the first thing that comes to mind is to 'find an acquaintance to settle matters.'" In addition, many drunk drivers have no obvious external manifestations and are highly concealed, making them difficult to detect and seize, which further encourages drivers to take chances. (4) Difficulties in law enforcement still exist.
It is necessary to conduct a breathalyzer test on the perpetrator in order to determine the traffic violation of drunk driving. At present, some traffic control departments lack sufficient drunk driving detection equipment, especially in underdeveloped areas, where it is difficult to obtain drunk driving certificates. In the process of law enforcement, drunk drivers often evade and delay the detection of blood alcohol concentration. For example, some drunk drivers drink mineral water or drinks to dilute the alcohol content; some people deliberately pass the test when facing the alcohol tester. Do not blow to avoid the test; some find the traffic police and immediately change seats with passengers who do not drink; others abandon the car when the traffic police are not prepared, and then send friends or family members who have not drunk to deal with it, etc. , leading to inaccurate characterization of drunk driving traffic violations, hindering the effective management of drunk driving, and promoting the culture of drunk driving.
3. Thoughts on effectively controlling "drunk driving"
How to effectively control drunk driving and make it a high-voltage line that cannot be touched or dare not be touched? The author believes that it is not something that can be solved by “criminalizing drunk driving”. According to statistics from the Traffic Management Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security, in the two years since the law was implemented, public security agencies across the country have investigated and dealt with a total of 8.71 million drunk driving cases, a year-on-year decrease of 39.3%, of which 12,200 drunken driving cases were reported, a year-on-year decrease of 42.7%. It can be seen that the number of drunk driving is only decreasing but not increasing. Controlling drunk driving should start from the following aspects:
(1) Normalize publicity and education
First, make full use of social forces such as television, radio, newspapers and periodicals to widely publicize the dangers of drunk driving and related Laws and regulations, exposure of typical cases, so that every driver can truly understand the dangers of drunk driving. The second is to promote it in hotels, restaurants, bars, etc. , and play the feature film on drunk driving accidents in a loop to discourage drunk driving as soon as possible and eliminate the safety hazards of drunk driving from the source. Third, we must use some unique and effective publicity and education methods. For example, the Beijing Shijingshan Traffic Detachment has adopted “involvement education” for drunk driving drivers, requiring them to bring their spouse or unit leader to receive education together when they go to the traffic control department to receive punishment. Through education, the concept of "driving without drinking, and drinking without driving" can be deeply rooted in people's hearts.
(2) Strict law enforcement
China’s penalties for drunk driving are not lax. Article 96 of the "Road Traffic Safety Law of the People's Republic of China" implements a floating system of "for one drunk driving incident, the compulsory insurance will increase by 30%" until April 1, 2065438. On May 11, 1, the 19th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eleventh National People's Congress voted to pass the "Amendment to the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China (VIII)", which was officially implemented. The new crime of dangerous driving was included in the criminal law. . These regulations are very deterrent, and the key lies in whether they can be implemented strictly and to the letter. First, law enforcement agencies should set an example and prevent drunk driving; second, drink drivers should be treated equally, and those who do not handle human rights cases will be severely punished in accordance with the law. As long as law enforcement departments treat "drunk driving" as an untouchable high-voltage line, the number of drunk driving cases will be greatly reduced.
(3) Improve punishment methods
my country's current punishment methods for drunk driving include temporary driving license suspension, fines, administrative detention, criminal detention, and criminal liability. Looking at countries around the world, there are various ways to punish people for drinking. For example, Japanese regulations stipulate that if a driver's blood alcohol concentration exceeds 0.05, he will be sentenced to hard labor for up to two years, fined 50,000 yen, and his driver's license will be revoked. At the same time, alcohol suppliers will be held accountable; Sweden stipulates that drunk drivers will be sent to a demobilization center for at least 30 days of rehabilitation treatment at their own expense; Poland stipulates that information on drunk drivers caught by the Polish police will be uploaded to the police's special website. It is then sent to newspapers in various countries for exposure; Lithuania stipulates that detained drunk drivers will be awarded special car license plates, starting with the letter "O" to remind pedestrians to "stay away"; Norway stipulates that judges are allowed to sentence drunk drivers to one jail term per year months; if violations continue, the time will last for 20 years, etc. It can be seen from these regulations that methods such as holding alcohol suppliers accountable, exposing newspapers and magazines, and awarding special car brands are all worth learning from. For "good face" Chinese people, especially those with status and status, the deterrent effect of punishment on reputation cannot be underestimated when exposed by media tools or units such as TV newspapers or units, and license plates with special letters are awarded. watch for.