危険運転罪 事故抑止へ適用要件見直しを

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Aug. 17, 2012)
Dangerous driving charge should be applied more often
危険運転罪　事故抑止へ適用要件見直しを（8月16日付・読売社説）

It is important for authorities to discourage reckless driving, which often results in tragic accidents.
　悲惨な交通事故につながる無謀運転を抑止することが大切だ。

Justice Minister Makoto Taki has said his ministry will review the requirements for applying a charge of dangerous driving resulting in death and injury under the Penal Code. He will ask the Legislative Council of the Justice Ministry, an advisory panel to the minister, to examine the issue as early as September, with an eye on revising the law.
　滝法相が、刑法の危険運転致死傷罪について、適用要件を見直す方針を表明した。法改正を念頭に、９月にも法制審議会に諮問する。

The charge of dangerous driving was established in 2001 as part of efforts to impose more severe punishments on reckless drivers. However, there has always been criticism that the requirements for applying the charge are too narrow.
　危険運転罪は、悪質なドライバーに対する厳罰化の一環として、２００１年に新設された。しかし、「適用要件が限定的に過ぎる」という批判が絶えない。

We believe it is necessary for the criteria for the charge to be reviewed.
　見直しは必要なことだろう。

===

Kameoka accident triggers review

Taki's move came after an accident that occurred in Kameoka, Kyoto Prefecture, in April, killing two primary school students who were traveling to school in a group, as well as a woman who was accompanying the group.
　法相が見直しに動き出したきっかけは、京都府亀岡市で４月、集団登校中の児童ら３人が犠牲となった事故だ。

The accident was allegedly caused by an 18-year-old who fell asleep at the wheel and plowed into the group of children. The suspect, who did not have a driver's license, reportedly had been joyriding all night long.
当時１８歳の無免許の少年が、徹夜で軽乗用車を乗り回し、居眠り運転の末、児童の列に突っ込んだ。

Relatives of the accident's victims called for the driver to be charged with dangerous driving, which carries a punishment of up to 20 years in prison. However, prosecutors indicted him on the lesser charge of negligent driving resulting in death and injury, for which the maximum prison term is just seven years.
　遺族は、懲役が最高２０年の危険運転罪の適用を求めたが、検察は、懲役７年が上限の自動車運転過失致死傷罪で少年を起訴した。

As set out in the Penal Code, circumstances in which a dangerous driving charge can be made include the following:
　危険運転罪が成立する要件として、刑法は、

-- The person had no driving skills.
「運転技能を有していない」ことや、

-- The car was traveling too fast for the driver to control.
制御できないほど高速での運転、

-- The driver was seriously impaired by alcohol or drugs.
飲酒や薬物の影響による正常でない状態での運転などを規定している。

Prosecutors for the Kameoka case focused on the first circumstance, but decided it did not apply because the boy had often driven before.
　亀岡市の事故では、検察は、少年が過去にも無免許運転を繰り返していたことから、「運転技能を有していない」との要件に当てはまらないと判断した。

Many people must find such a conclusion hard to understand.
　釈然としない思いを抱く人が多いのではないだろうか。

The case illustrates how difficult it is to apply a charge of dangerous driving.
　危険運転罪を適用する難しさを象徴するケースと言えよう。

===

Fukuoka case illustrates difficulty

Whether to apply the charge was a major issue in a case stemming from an accident that occurred six years ago in Fukuoka, in which a drunk driver struck another vehicle, causing it to fall into the sea. The accident resulted in the deaths of three young children inside the vehicle.
　危険運転罪の適用の是非が裁判の大きな争点となった例が、６年前、福岡市で起きた事故だ。追突され、海に転落した車に取り残された幼児３人が犠牲になった。

The Fukuoka District Court rejected a charge of dangerous driving in the case, but the Fukuoka High Court found that it applied. That decision was finalized by the Supreme Court.
　飲酒運転だった男に対し、１審は危険運転罪を認めなかった。しかし、２審は適用し、最高裁で確定した。

The courts made these opposite decisions because it was difficult to conclude whether the case fit one of the dangerous driving circumstances--in other words, if the defendant was utterly incapable of driving normally.
司法判断が分かれたのは、「正常運転が困難な状態」という要件に該当するかどうかの見極めが難しかったからだ。

For prosecutors to indict a person on a charge of dangerous driving, they have to probe in detail the degree to which the person was drunk and the way he or she was driving at the time of the accident. There are high hurdles to establishing such a case.
　検察が、危険運転罪で起訴するには、運転手の酒酔いの程度や、事故当時の運転状況などを詳細に立証する必要がある。立件の壁は高いと言える。

About 64,000 people were indicted on the charge of negligent driving in 2010, while only 230 were charged with dangerous driving.
　一昨年、自動車運転過失罪で起訴されたのは約６万４０００人だったのに対し、危険運転罪での起訴は２３０人にとどまった。

If a person causes a fatal accident and is indicted on a charge of dangerous driving, his or her case is subject to a trial involving both lay and professional judges.
　死亡事故を起こし、危険運転罪で起訴された被告は、裁判員裁判の対象となっている。

It is necessary to thoroughly clarify grounds for a charge of dangerous driving so that it can be more widely applied. This would help lay judges involved in such trials make fair findings of fact.
　裁判員による公正な事実認定を助けるためにも、要件をより明確に整理し、適用の幅を広げていくことが求められている。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Aug. 16, 2012)
（2012年8月16日02時35分  読売新聞）