The Changhua District Court on Wednesday sentenced a man to nine years and six months in prison for a drunk driving hit-and-run that killed a man and injured the dead man’s wife.
The 45-year-old driver, surnamed Huang (黃), was given a jail sentence of seven years and two months for causing a death while driving under the influence, and an additional four years and eight months for fleeing the scene of the crash.
The court set a combined sentence of nine years and six months, a statement said yesterday.
Photo: Lin Liang-che, Taipei Times
The verdict can be appealed.
Huang was driving in Changhua’s Hemei Township (和美) at 7:37pm on March 16 last year after drinking at a friend’s home and struck a married couple walking along the road, the statement said, adding that the couple had been sent flying into a gutter.
Huang stopped at the scene for six seconds without getting out of his vehicle, then fled, it said.
The couple was discovered by a passersby and they were taken to hospital.
Huang was subsequently stopped by police and agreed to take a breath test at 10:44pm, which showed that his breath had an alcohol concentration of 0.7 milligrams per liter (mg/L) — well above the 0.15mg/L legal limit, the court said.
The husband died after 21 days of treatment due to head trauma and complications from acute respiratory distress syndrome.
Huang was held fully responsible for the crash, as he had also been speeding and failed to keep a proper lookout, the court said.
Furthermore, after hitting the couple, he fled the scene in an attempt to evade responsibility, showing no regard for the victims, it said, adding that his actions resulted in a critical delay in rescue efforts.
Huang initially tried to shift the blame to his wife, claiming she had been the one driving, the court said.
He also later withdrew his guilty plea for fleeing the scene, saying he had not intended for anyone to die — actions the court said showed a lack of genuine remorse.
However, the court also took into account that he had two children and no prior criminal or traffic violations.
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