Transport company boss gets four months in jail for drunken driving

A driver who rammed into a car while twice the legal alcohol limit has become the first in Beijing to be prosecuted under the nation's tough new road laws.

Guo Shudong, 37, was sentenced to four months in prison and fined 2,000 yuan on Monday after police captured him at the scene of a minor accident in Fangshan district.

"The sentence is not very strict," said sentencing judge Wang Quanying. "His alcohol level was high and he was 100 percent responsible for the accident, which caused damage to two vehicles."

Prosecutors said Guo had been drinking beer until about 9 pm on May 1 before he drove several friends in a minivan to a nearby hotel. Shortly after midnight, he shunted a stationary car at an intersection.

The defendant agreed compensation with the other driver, but eyewitness called police. A toxicology report later showed Guo had 153.2 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood. The legal limit is 80 mg.

In court, Guo, who hails from the Inner Mongolia autonomous region and runs a transport business in Beijing's Chaoyang district, said he accepted the sentence and begged the judge to show mercy. He promised he will never drink again.

More than 200 taxi drivers were invited to watch the proceedings as part of the city transport authority's efforts to educate cabbies. "I think the sentence was reasonable," said Zhao Zhenguo, 57, who drives for Wanjian Taxi Company. "It (the court invite) is a very useful way for us to see what is happening."

New laws introduced on May 1 mean drunken drivers now face up to six months in detention, as well as a 2,000-yuan fine and a five-year driving ban. Repeat offenders or those involved in fatal accidents could lose their licenses for life and even be tried for dangerous driving, which carries a maximum punishment of seven years in prison.

Guo said he was aware of the new regulations on drunken driving but thought he would "be OK". He said he has been driving for six or seven years and this was his first offense, although he also claimed he only got his driving license in 2009.

At least nine drunk drivers have been taken into custody since May 1, with three involved in traffic accidents.

China Daily

(China Daily 05/10/2011)