State to impound drunk drivers' cars

[kaspaas]

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=qw1163065140379S263

I would say this is fine - take a drunk driver's car!

 

[bwana]

I dont see anything else working in a country where driving licenses almost seem to be optional.

However the article says

Drunk drivers' cars can be forfeited to the state

even though the title says "impound". That would imply transfer of ownership wouldnt it?

 

[Leitmotif]

I foresee a lot of court cases with the government spending loads of cash because people will contest the proportionality of the offense.

 

[bwana]

I foresee a lot of court cases with the government spending loads of cash because people will contest the proportionality of the offense.

As long as the cars and drivers are off the roads then let them contest irrespective of if they eventually get their cars back.

 

[Gothan]

Hell I walk everywhere when I'm drunk, have learned the hard way that a car and a streetsign does not go well with an intoxicated mind

 

[Tux]

I'm all for it. Fine them the first time, maybe even the second. After that, take his car away from him. Donate it to charity or something where it will do good.

 

[Alan]

I'd prefer the government to concentrate on impounding the drunk drivers themselves. Hopefully for as long as possible.

 

[killadoob]

i think that there should be some sort of a drunkedness to take away the car

i mean lets say i go out and have a long ton of black label but only and i get pulled over, the cop thinks im drunk takes me and im barely even drunk? should they take away my car because i have 1 drink and the cop thought i was drunk?

i mean if im like 5% over the legal limit should my car be taken away even though im 95% normal?

and if someone says that 5% could kill someone that will be very silly

 

[Alan]

i think that there should be some sort of a drunkedness to take away the car

i mean lets say i go out and have a long ton of black label but only and i get pulled over, the cop thinks im drunk takes me and im barely even drunk? should they take away my car because i have 1 drink and the cop thought i was drunk?

i mean if im like 5% over the legal limit should my car be taken away even though im 95% normal?

and if someone says that 5% could kill someone that will be very silly

It should depend on how far over the limit you are. Saying that, even 5% over is still breaking the law and should be punished with a fine.

 

[Leitmotif]

Drunken driving kills. The legal limit is not an arbitrary number. Alcohol affects perception, reflexes, coordination, and sense of responsibility. You do not drive as well as you think you do when you have been drinking. And even 5% chance of you doing something dangerously stupid is too high.

Let me state that I don't drink alcohol. The most severe penalties possible should be levied on persons who do so and then endanger others. However, I'd like to know what else can be tied to the commission of a crime and confiscated. I want to see hard rules or at the very least strong guidelines on when it is permissible to seize someone's vehicle. Arbitrary seizure of property is one of the earmarks of a dictatorship.

 

[Creed]

Mythbusters did a show to test what is more dangerous, driving while over the limit or talking on the phone.

They found that people drove worse while chatting on the phone than those who were drunk.I agree that people shouldn't drive drunk ant that's why when we go drinking we have a designated driver.

While I was in the UK I used to take the bus or the tube if it was still open when i went home.We don't have a public transport system in SA so what are the people supposed to do when their cars get taken away?

Will they still have the pay the monthly installment when Sipho in home affairs takes the "impounded" car as his own? How will those people get to work and back?What happens to them and their families if they lose their jobs because they can't get to work?

Do u really trust this govt with laws that enable them to take your car on a speedcop's sayso? I don't

And before u support this initiative remember it's more dangerous to drive while talking on your phone than it is to drive drunk.Maybe they shoud just take ur car if u were talking on the phone too

 

[bwana]

Mythbusters did a show to test what is more dangerous, driving while over the limit or talking on the phone.

Mythbusters is hardly scientific evidence.

While I was in the UK I used to take the bus or the tube if it was still open when i went home.We don't have a public transport system in SA so what are the people supposed to do when their cars get taken away?

Going out on a limb here but perhaps they should consider not drinking and driving in the first place

Will they still have the pay the monthly installment when Sipho in home affairs takes the "impounded" car as his own? How will those people get to work and back?What happens to them and their families if they lose their jobs because they can't get to work?

Yes they will still be financially responsible. Same as above - nobody has to drink and drive.

And before u support this initiative remember it's more dangerous to drive while talking on your phone than it is to drive drunk.Maybe they shoud just take ur car if u were talking on the phone too

Says a tv show - a good one at that but so is South Park and I dont go around blaming canadians for everything bad (just the wannabees).

I'm not saying that driving and chatting away holding a cellphone isnt dangerous - of course it is - but thats completely unrelated to drunk driving. More dangerous - less dangerous - either way still dangerous.

 

[Alan]

I agree 100%

 

[Creed]

I don't believe everyting I see on TV and I realise that the show isn't exactly conclusive but after I saw I read up on it and studies show it is more dangerous to talk on the phone while driving then it is to drive drunk.

You did a nice job of splitting my post in small bits but u didn't answer my question, do u trust this govt with laws that will enable them to take away our property at the sayso of a speedcop?

Go read this:
http://www.sante.bouyguestelecom.fr/btdocs/653.pdf

 

[Leitmotif]

I agree 100%

With whom?

 

[Alan]

With whom?

Bwana

 

[bwana]

I don't believe everyting I see on TV and I realise that the show isn't exactly conclusive but after I saw I read up on it and studies show it is more dangerous to talk on the phone while driving then it is to drive drunk.

You did a nice job of splitting my post in small bits but u didn't answer my question, do u trust this govt with laws that will enable them to take away our property at the sayso of a speedcop?

Go read this:
http://www.sante.bouyguestelecom.fr/btdocs/653.pdf

Sorry - I missed that part out. A traffic cop cant just look at you and declare that you're inebriated. Your blood alcohol level must be measured in the prescribed manner then these results have to be presented as evidence in a court.

I'll have a look at the pdf - seems interesting - but it doesnt change the fact that drunk driving (which is the subject at hand) is dangerous and preventable.

EDIT - still just skimming through that study but I couldnt help notice in the conclusion -

When driving conditions and time on task were controlled for, the impairments associated with using a cell phone while driving can be as profound as those associated with driving while drunk.

 

[Highflyer_GP]

Well Creed does have a point. It's scary how much power is being entrusted with cops that a person no longer has a chance to defend himself. If the cop says jail due to outstanding fines, then jail it is. If he says impound, then impound it is.

Let's forget about the drunk driving issue for a second and think about this, things are becoming more and more like a Judge Dredd type scenario. No wonder the court system isn't working for us - the cops are already entrusted to make judgements. Funny how I don't see these laws being extended to impound unroadworthy taxi's which are far more dangerous

 

[killadoob]

dude 5% is nothing

when i wake up and go to shop because we need mjilk or something liek that im prolly driving at 50%

whats bad is when you can see straight or when some ppl drink they drive super fast

i think 2 beers and your over is crazy

ive never heard of someone doing something stupid after 3 beers?

come on now lets get real here

i think that you should be fined and jailed due to the intoxication level, i mean 1 beer a night is crazy absolutly crazy is you ask me

but it is the law and lucky i have a g/f


im pretty sure by the time ive been pulled over and jailed because i had a 3 beers that cops work could have used for catching murderers and rapists not some bloke who has 3 beers and is 100% capable of driving

 

[Turbo_Aspiration]

Do u really trust this govt with laws that enable them to take your car on a speedcop's sayso? I don't

I trust that they wont go taking everyones car because they want to. But then, say they've taken my car, do I trust them with it? hell no. It has nothing to do with them, I wouldn't trust anyone fully.. no matter what country I was in.

That said, id trust them a lot more than i trust a drunk driving on the same road as my loved ones. Its no use complaining that you've had your car taken away and now u cant feed your family.. you should have thought about that b4 u took the life of those around u into your own hands.

About talking on your phone, these people should be treated harshly as well. Theres a difference tho: u don't usually talk on your phone all the way home and can drop it when things get hairy; when you're drunk, you're drunk all the way home. But yes, having been hit by someone speeding and talking on their phone, I know you are also taking others lives into your own hands.