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There have been many cases in which bereaved families are left dissatisfied with the current situation of malicious drivers not facing severe penalties. To deter reckless driving, it is necessary to change the law so that such drivers can be punished strictly.
The Justice Ministry’s study group has compiled a draft report calling for a review of requirements for applying charges of “dangerous driving causing death or injury” under the law to punish driving inflicting death or injury. The report calls for the introduction of numerical standards for speeds and the amount of alcohol consumption when charging drivers for accidents caused by driving at high speeds or drunken driving.
Automobile accidents resulting in bodily injury have been regarded as cases of negligence due to driving errors. However, a drunken driving accident on the Tomei Expressway that killed two girls led to the establishment of the new charges of dangerous driving causing death or injury in 2001.
While the maximum statutory penalty for negligent driving is seven years of imprisonment with labor, the penalty is up to 20 years for dangerous driving, which is viewed as a malicious and deliberate crime. Needless to say, it is important to properly assess the actual situation and punish the offender.
In reality, however, there is confusion regarding the application of the law in many parts of Japan.
In Oita City, a driver was initially indicted without arrest on charges of negligent driving in a fatal accident caused by a car traveling at 194 kph on a road with a legal speed limit of 60 kph. In another accident in Isesaki, Gunma Prefecture, three members of a family were killed after being hit by a drunken driver of a truck, and the driver was also indicted on charges of negligent driving.
In both cases, the charges were changed to dangerous driving in response to calls of the bereaved families. However, it can be said that the initial decisions by the prosecutors were extremely out of step with public opinion. It is quite natural that the bereaved families are not fully satisfied.
The reason prosecutors are cautious about charging drivers with dangerous driving is said to be due to the ambiguity of the current law. Dangerous driving is applied to accidents caused by driving at a speed that makes it “difficult to control” the vehicle or alcohol consumption that makes “normal driving difficult,” among other cases. But as there are no specific numerical standards, the hurdle to identify dangerous driving has been high.
Therefore, this time, the study group called for establishing standards for speeds and amount of alcohol consumption and demanded that drivers who reach these standards be uniformly deemed to be engaging in dangerous driving. If there are numerical standards, there should be less variation in judgments. This is a reasonable proposal, and it is hoped that the government will proceed with the establishment of the standards.
However, even if standards are established, there may be some cases that cannot be judged correctly if the standards are relied upon alone. Even if a driver’s speed is below the standard, it is quite possible that the overall situation could be evaluated as dangerous driving due to the addition of multiple factors, such as alcohol consumption.
The important thing is to utilize numerical standards and ultimately grasp the entire picture of an accident before making an appropriate judgment.
Although it is a matter of course, it is also essential for society as a whole to reaffirm the importance of not driving at speeds in excess of limits or while under the influence of alcohol.
