Constitutional Court “Aggravated punishment for drunk driving more than twice” is unconstitutional
Jang Yong-jun also prosecuted for the ‘Yun Chang-ho Act’… general drunk driving
Rapper Noel (real name Jang Yong-jun) / Photo = Hankyung DB
As the Constitutional Court ruled that some provisions of the so-called ‘Yun Chang-ho Act’ (revised Road Traffic Act), which strengthen punishment for habitual drunk drivers, were unconstitutional, the prosecution also announced that it would impose a sentence corresponding to the crime within the current law. The rapper Noel (real name Jang Yong-jun), the son of Jang Je-won, a member of the People’s Strength Council, who was handed over to trial under the ‘Yun Chang-ho Act’ is also expected to benefit.
According to the legal community on the 28th, the Supreme Prosecutor’s Office ordered the front-line agencies to change the indictment of related cases as a follow-up measure as the Constitutional Court ruled that Article 148-2 (1) of the Old Road Traffic Act was unconstitutional and the penalty provisions were lost.
Jang Yong-joon was convicted last year on charges of drunk driving and attempting to switch drivers. He is accused of not only refusing to take a breathalyzer test by a police officer who was dispatched to the scene after the accident, but also assaulting a police officer.
Prosecutors indicted Jang Yong-jun and applied the charge of violating Article 148-2 (1) of the Road Traffic Act, which was judged unconstitutional, of the Yoon Chang-ho Act along with the charge of obstruction of the execution of official duties.
The Yoon Chang-ho Act refers to the ‘Road Traffic Act’ and the ‘Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes’, which strengthened the punishment for drunk driving. It was implemented in 2019 after the accident of Yoon Chang-ho, who lost his life in a drunk driving car in 2018.
The key point of the Yoon Chang-ho Act is to strengthen punishment for drunk driving, such as allowing a victim to be sentenced to life imprisonment or at least three years in prison, up from the existing one year in prison, if the victim dies as a result of drunk driving.
Article 148-2 (1) of the Road Traffic Act, which the Constitutional Court took issue with, stipulates that a person who violates the prohibition of drunk driving on two or more occasions shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not less than 2 years and not more than 5 years, or by a fine of not less than 10 million won and not more than 20 million won. which. Previously, if caught driving under the influence of alcohol three or more times, severe punishment was required, but the standard was strengthened to two or more.
The Constitutional Court ruled that the provision was unconstitutional, saying that it violated the principle of excessive prohibition on the grounds that it did not specifically consider the habituality of the crime or the level of risk. It is said that punishment will be aggravated without judging whether or not it is a habitual offense just because there is a history of drunk driving once.
The prosecution judged Jang Yong-joon’s refusal to take a breathalyzer test to be drunk driving and applied the charge of violating Article 148-2 (1) of the Road Traffic Act.
Rapper Noel (real name Jang Yong-jun), the son of National Power member Jang Je-won, who was arrested on charges of driving without a license, refusing to take a breathalyzer, and assaulting a police officer, left the Seocho Police Station in Seocho-gu, Seoul on October 19 and is being sent to the prosecution. /News1
At the first trial held on the 19th, Jang Yong-joon’s side delayed the statement of opinion on the contents of the prosecution, saying that it did not finish the analysis of the closed circuit (CC) TV video. He added, “I think there may be issues that need to be debated regarding the execution (interference) of official duties other than driving without a license.”
The second trial for Jang Yong-jun will be held on December 17th.
Kim So-yeon, reporter at Hankyung.com sue123@hankyung.com
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