Drivers Who May Be Charged with 'Drunk Driving Hit-and-Run' ... Showing Up the Day After Traffic Accidents

Possibility of Disappearance to Buy Time for Alcohol to Leave System
No Current Legal Method to Apply Charges Even if Drunk Driving Suspected
Experts Call for Active Legal Application and Harsher Punishments Like for Violent Crimes

[Image source=Pixabay]

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lee Gyehwa] There have been repeated cases where drivers suspected of drunk driving leave the scene of traffic accidents and later appear at the police station.

Driver A, in his 30s, abandoned his vehicle and left the scene immediately after a traffic accident in Seo-gu, Gwangju on the 21st. The responding police checked A’s vehicle license plate and tried to contact him, but A’s phone was turned off. A, who had disappeared, voluntarily appeared at the police station the next night, 34 hours later. During the police investigation, A reportedly stated, "I caused the accident due to drowsy driving and fled the scene out of fear." Also, it is known that after fleeing, A received an IV drip at a hospital due to a headache.

According to the Road Traffic Act, driving is prohibited if the driver's blood alcohol concentration is 0.03% or higher. A appeared 34 hours after the accident, making it impossible to measure his blood alcohol concentration, and the police stated that under current law, drunk driving charges could not be applied.

A similar incident occurred earlier in July. A vehicle driven by driver B, also in his 30s, collided with a vehicle ahead, injuring two people. B abandoned his vehicle and fled but appeared 30 hours after the accident. During the accident handling process, it was confirmed that B was undergoing trial for a previous drunk driving accident that occurred several months earlier.

Experts point out that there are cases exploiting the lack of immediate action after accidents. Professor Kim Jeonggyu of Honam University (Department of Police Administration) said in an interview with KBS, "Most drivers involved in accidents do not leave the scene," adding, "Drivers who flee are likely to abandon their cars and disappear to hide crimes such as unlicensed driving and drunk driving."

If a driver drinks and causes an accident and then flees, they face severe punishment under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Specific Crimes, known as 'hit-and-run drunk driving.' The problem is that drivers who cause drunk driving accidents try to avoid this by disappearing to buy time for the alcohol in their bodies to dissipate. If they reappear after a long disappearance, alcohol measurement becomes impossible.

Professor Kim emphasized, "Active application of the law and stronger punishment are necessary to make criminals understand that abandoning a car and fleeing is a wrong practice," adding, "Since traffic crimes have significant latent risks, they should be treated like serious crimes."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.