The government is considering treating drug-impaired driving as a distinct offense separate from drunk driving, potentially leading to harsher penalties amid growing concern over a recent spate of serious traffic accidents involving drivers under the influence of narcotics, Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) said yesterday.
Officials from the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) and Ministry of the Interior (MOI) are scheduled to meet on Monday next week to discuss possible amendments to the law, including tougher penalties and joint liability provisions for drug-impaired driving, Chen told a legislative committee hearing.
While drug use itself is already a criminal offense in Taiwan, driving a vehicle under the influence of narcotics — especially when it results in injury or death — should carry tougher penalties than drunk driving, Chen said.
Photo: Chou Min-hung, Taipei Times
"I think the criminal liability should be different from that for drunk driving," Chen said in response to questions on the issue by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers Wan Mei-ling (萬美玲) and Yang Chiung-ying (楊瓊瓔).
The two legislators expressed concern about a string of recent drug-related traffic accidents, including a crash on Monday that resulted in two deaths and two injuries.
Criminal and administrative penalties for drug-impaired driving are mostly the same as those for drunk driving, even though alcohol consumption is legal while drug use is a criminal offense in Taiwan, Wan said.
"If someone takes drugs and then drives and injures others, that is an aggravated offense," Wan said, calling for the two categories to be "decoupled" under the law and for stricter penalties to be imposed specifically for driving under the influence of drugs.
The National Police Agency has expressed support for amending the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例) to introduce joint liability penalties aimed at increasing passenger oversight responsibilities, she added.
Drug-impaired driving is "more frightening" than drunk driving, Yang said, urging the government to move quickly to impose tougher criminal penalties to better protect public safety.
In response, Chen said that the MOTC and MOI would discuss the possibility of legally separating drug-impaired driving and drunk driving, and would consider raising the related administrative and criminal penalties.
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