A court has acquitted a man in his 50s who, while intoxicated, caused his vehicle to move approximately 2 meters (about 6.6 feet).
On the 29th, legal sources said Ji Yun-seop, presiding judge of Criminal Division 3 at Cheongju District Court, found defendant A not guilty of driving under the influence. Prosecutors had alleged that A operated his passenger vehicle for roughly 2 meters while intoxicated.
At trial, A testified that after summoning a designated driver and bending down to retrieve the fee, his foot slipped off the brake pedal and the car moved on its own.
In his written opinion, Judge Ji said it was plausible that the thick puffer jacket the defendant was wearing could have accidentally struck the gearshift.
Judge Ji also noted that if the defendant had intended to drive while intoxicated, he would not have called for a designated driver in the first place.
After reviewing the vehicle’s speed, the distance it moved and other factors, the court concluded it was difficult to determine that the defendant had intentionally driven while intoxicated and therefore returned a not-guilty verdict.
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