Alleged drunk driver acquitted by Daegu court after claiming he parked before drinking

A court in Daegu acquitted a man in his 60s who was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, citing a lack of concrete evidence.

Mapo police conduct DUI stops in Seoul in December 2023. The picture is unrelated to the story. [YONHAP]

A court in Daegu acquitted a man in his 60s who was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, citing a lack of concrete evidence.

The driver was indicted for driving a Mercedes sedan while drunk for about 2.4 kilometers (1.5 miles) between an apartment parking lot in Suseong District and Jung District in Daegu on Sept. 16 last year.

The Daegu District Court announced it had acquitted the driver on Wednesday.

According to evidence accepted by the court, he stayed inside the car, after parking it, for about 39 seconds before stepping outside. About 40 minutes later, the police measured his blood alcohol concentration, which was recorded at 0.128 percent, higher than the 0.03 percent threshold for punishment under the Road Traffic Act.

Concentration levels higher than 0.08 percent can result in driver's license revocation.

Witnesses testified that the driver’s parking appeared abnormal, and he staggered and behaved strangely as soon as he got out of the car.

However, the driver claimed he drank “an entire bottle of soju with an alcohol content of 25 percent” only after parking the car and staying in it “for about 39 seconds,” implying that he didn't actually drive the vehicle while drunk.

The court tried to estimate the blood alcohol concentration at the time of driving by subtracting the increase caused by the driver’s “after-parking quick swig” from the measurement taken by the police.

In order to calculate the increase in blood alcohol concentration due to drinking after driving, the court applied the Widmark formula for adult males and the absorption rate most favorable to the defendant, based on existing cases.

However, it concluded there was no evidence to suggest that he had actually driven with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.03 percent or higher.

The court also pointed out that the investigative authorities failed to properly ascertain essential details necessary to determine whether the defendant was driving under the influence, such as the location, type and amount of alcohol consumed, and the time elapsed after drinking.

“Even if the defendant drank an entire bottle of soju as he claimed, it is hard to believe that he would display intoxicated behavior immediately after drinking,” the court said. “However, it is difficult to conclude that the defendant drove under the influence based solely on circumstantial evidence and speculation.”

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]