“I parked and drank in the car”… The reason why the 40-year-old was found not guilty on drunk driving charges

Widmark formula applied at the time of detection
Estimated blood alcohol level rise
Law: “You may have drank it after driving”

A man in his 40s who was charged with driving a vehicle while intoxicated was found not guilty. The court accepted the defendant's argument, pointing out the lack of specific evidence and the insufficiency of the investigation process.

On the 11th of last month, the Tongyeong Branch of Changwon District Court found Mr. A not guilty on charges of violating the Road Traffic Act (drunk driving).

Mr. A was handed over to trial on charges of driving about 40km from a road in Haenam-gun, Jeollanam-do to a nearby gas station with a blood alcohol content of 0.074% at around 8 p.m. on July 27 last year.

At the time, the investigative agency charged Mr. A with drunk driving based on the fact that he spoke gibberish and stated that “someone else was driving.”

It was confirmed that Mr. A, who had previously been on vacation with his girlfriend and an acquaintance, drank alcohol while having lunch that day. After finishing his meal, Mr. A called a designated driver and arrived at the accommodation. Mr. A woke up a few hours later, got into an argument with his girlfriend, and then got into a car.

Mr. A, who arrived at a nearby gas station, drank a bottle of soju in the car and fell asleep in the back seat of the car. Afterwards, the police were dispatched following a report from a gas station employee, and a breathalyzer test was conducted.

At trial, Mr. A completely denied the drunk driving charge. Mr. A emphasized, “I was upset after an argument with my girlfriend, so I drove to the parking lot, drank alcohol in the car, and fell asleep. Even though I wanted to explain that I wasn’t drunk and driving, the police were only interested in testing me for sobriety. I presented a bottle of soju that I had already drank, but the police ignored it.”

The court ruled that the possibility that Mr. A drank alcohol in the vehicle after stopping near a gas station could not be completely ruled out. The court explained the reason for the acquittal by saying, “The defendant was sleeping in the back seat when he was found, and there was no one who witnessed him driving under the influence,” and “The police officer who dispatched to the scene did not take any pictures of the condition of the soju bottle at the scene or leave any records regarding it. It is difficult to conclude that the defendant was driving under the influence based on the evidence presented alone.”

Attorney Song Jae-baek of Daeryun Law Firm said, “Among the evidence records in this case, there was no evidence that could be used to estimate the time and amount of Mr. A’s drinking. If we use the Widmark formula, we cannot rule out the possibility that Mr. A’s blood alcohol level was in an upward phase at the time of the breathalyzer test. If we back-estimate the blood alcohol level through this, it cannot be concluded that he exceeded the punishment standard of 0.03% at the time of driving.” explained.

He added, "The investigative agency rejected Mr. A's claim even though he himself retrieved the empty soju bottle he had consumed. This should be viewed as a case where evidence was omitted," adding, "In accordance with Article 76 and Article 172, Paragraph 1 of the National Police Agency's criminal investigation rules, the police officer should have made efforts to secure evidence, such as writing a live investigation report. Rather, because Mr. A's claims were consistent, a not guilty verdict was possible."

Digital Content Team

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“I parked and drank in the car”… The reason why the 40-year-old was found not guilty on drunk driving charges (link)