Want China Times
Date: 2015-10-24
By: CNA
Interior Minister Chen Wei-zen expressed concern Friday that lighter penalties for repeat
A police officer inspecting drivers for alcohol levels in Taichung, May 11. (File photo/Huang Kuo-feng)
drunk-driving offenses may set back the Taiwanese government’s efforts to crack down on such cases.
Chen was responding to a United Daily News report earlier in the day that said Taichung prosecutors have been opting for fines instead of prison sentences against some recidivist drunk drivers because of prison overcrowding.
Under Taiwan law, a prison sentence of less than six months may be converted into a fine. However, people convicted of three drunk-driving offenses within a period of five years are liable to receive a prison sentence on the third conviction, without the option of a fine, according to a policy that was introduced by the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) in 2013 to curb drunk driving.
Chen said that the policy, in combination with stronger police enforcement of relevant regulations, has resulted in a decrease in the number of deaths related to drunk driving. [FULL STORY]
