The Council of Grand Justices on Friday ruled that it is unconstitutional to force drivers to take a blood alcohol test after an accident, and said that traffic laws must be revised accordingly.
The council was referring to one of the provisions in Article 35 of the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例), which stipulates that drivers who cannot or will not take a breath alcohol test after an accident may be taken to a medical institution or inspection agency for a blood alcohol test.
The case was first brought before a judge in the Hualien District Court, after a man identified only by his surname, Lin (林), was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol when his scooter crashed into a utility pole in January 2016.
Photo: Wu Cheng-feng, Taipei Times
Lin was rushed to a hospital and was unable to take a breath alcohol test, but police officers had his blood taken to test for alcohol while he was in the emergency room.
In the district court ruling, the judge, surnamed Wu (吳), said that it was against a person’s basic rights to perform such a test without their consent.
It was also in contravention of Article 22 of the Constitution, which guarantees the freedom and rights of all people who pose no threat to social order or public welfare, Wu said.
The council on Friday agreed with Wu’s ruling and said traffic laws must be revised within two years of Friday’s judgement.
In the interim, police officers can still have a driver tested if they suspect them of driving under the influence or if the driver refuses or is incapable of taking a breath alcohol test after an accident, but a warrant must first be obtained from the local prosecutors’ office, the council said.
If a blood test is necessary in an emergency situation, the police can proceed, but they must inform the prosecutors’ office within 24 hours, the court ruled.
The ruling follows changes made under the Constitutional Court Procedure Act (憲法訴訟法), which was promulgated in 2019 and took effect on Jan. 4 to replace the Constitutional Interpretation Procedure Act (司法院大法官審理案件法).
NOVEMBER ELECTIONS: The KMT urged the CECC to exclude Taiwanese from the arrivals cap, as they would lose their right to vote if they could not return by July 26 The COVID-19-related border control measures and the cap on the number of international arrivals are not being eased, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday as it reported 112 imported cases of the Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 of SARS-CoV-2. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥), who is CECC spokesperson, said a meeting was held yesterday morning in which the Cabinet decided that current border control measures would remain in place. He said the main considerations were global COVID-19 cases increasing 21 percent last week, imported cases of Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 continuing to be detected
Samsung Electronics Co yesterday commenced mass production of 3-nanometer chips that are more powerful and efficient than predecessors, beating rival Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to a key milestone in the race to build the most advanced chips in the world. South Korea’s largest company said in a statement that it was beginning with 3-nanometer semiconductors for high-performance and specialized low-power computing applications before expanding to mobile processors. By applying so-called Gate-All-Around transistor architecture, Samsung’s 3-nanometer products reduce power consumption by up to 45 percent and improve performance by 23 percent compared with 5-nanometer chips, it said. Samsung’s push to be first
‘STRONG SUPPORT’: Liberal International expressed concern over Chinese incursions into Taiwan’s airspace, saying they could undermine regional peace Liberal International on Saturday passed a “World Today Resolution” recognizing the threat that China poses to Taiwan, while supporting Taipei’s inclusion in international organizations. Liberal International was established in 1947 as a federation of liberal political parties from around the world. Last week, it held its 63rd congress in Sofia, Bulgaria, which was attended by 221 representatives from 58 countries. President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), in her capacity as chairperson of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), delivered a speech in a pre-recorded video at the congress’ opening on Thursday. DPP spokeswoman Hsieh Pei-fen (謝佩芬) yesterday said the party, which has been a member of
Hong Kong singer Jacky Cheung (張學友) has been criticized by the “Little Pink” — a term used to describe young, jingoistic Chinese nationalists on the Web — for saying “Hong Kong jia you [加油, an expression of encouragement].” To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the handover of Hong Kong’s return to Chinese rule on Friday, China Central Television made a series of programs in which it interviewed Cheung and other celebrities. Cheung, speaking in Cantonese, said in the interview that “Hong Kong has been through a lot in the past 25 years, including ups and downs” and ended with the phrase “Hong
RSS