The judiciary listens to the voices of the people, adheres to the principle of putting people first, and strikes a more reasonable balance between severe punishment and discretionary leniency.
The threshold for drunk driving has been raised. According to CCTV news, on December 18, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security, and the Ministry of Justice jointly issued the "Opinions on Handling Criminal Cases of Dangerous Driving While Intoxicated". The Opinions, which will come into force on December 28, 2023, make it clear that if the circumstances of drunk driving are minor, they can be exempted from prosecution or conviction and sentenceWhere the circumstances are obviously minor and the harm is not great, it may not be handled as a crime, and administrative punishments may be given in accordance with the provisions of the Road Traffic Safety Law.
Data map. Photo according to Visual China.
This is an "Opinion" that actively "loosens" the punishment for drunk driving. As we all know, since the criminalization of drunk driving in 2011, although it has played a positive role in deterring criminal behavior with the power of criminal punishment, and has achieved some results in promoting the treatment of drunk driving and drunk driving, the disadvantages have also been highlighted. Statistics show that since 2019, the crime of dangerous driving caused by drunk driving has "put 300,000 people in prison every year", surpassing the crime of theft for four consecutive years, becoming a veritable "number one crime". These data also show that there are indeed problems behind the scenes, such as too large a crackdown area and excessive consumption of judicial resources.
Not only that, the "one-size-fits-all" punishment for drunk driving also violates the spirit of modesty in the criminal law. Punishment is not the sole purpose of legislation, the ultimate goal of criminal legislation is to prevent crime, educate and correct, and maintain social justice. In accordance with the spirit of criminal law, it is not necessary to make it an offence if the application of other laws is sufficient to restrain an offence;Wherever a light penalty is sufficient to deter a criminal act, a heavy penalty should not be imposed.
The latest "Opinions" well uphold the spirit of modesty in the criminal law. Specific circumstances such as "driving a motor vehicle for emergency purposes such as first aid for injured or sick persons, and it does not constitute emergency evasion", "driving a motor vehicle for a short distance in a residential area, parking lot, or other such place due to moving a vehicle, parking in a parking lot, or other such place", "driving a motor vehicle for a short distance by another person to a residential area, parking lot, or other such place, or driving a short distance from a residential area, parking lot, or other such place in order to be driven by another person", may be found to be a significantly minor circumstance, The harm is not great, it is not considered a crime, and the punishment scale is significantly relaxed, which helps to effectively curb drunk driving with less legal costs and fewer judicial resources.
Some people may be worried about whether the "leniency" of drunk driving in the "Opinions" for drunk driving where the circumstances are minor and the circumstances are obviously minor and the harm is not great, will promote the phenomenon of drunk driving. In fact, looking at the "Opinions", it can be seen that drunk driving should be lighter and more serious, and it also stipulates 15 aggravating circumstances such as drunk driving and drunk driving, and 10 situations in which probation is generally not applicable, and clarifies the heavier treatment of situations such as traffic accidents, high risk of behavior, and deep subjective malice.
The rule of law is the spirit of the times and a true reflection of the voice of the people. The judiciary listens to the voice of the people, adheres to the people-oriented principle, and strikes a more reasonable balance between severe punishment and discretionary leniency, and also promotes a big step forward in the rule of law.
Red Star News Special Commentator Chen Yu.
Edited by Wang Yintao.
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