Court Upholds Drunk Driving
Law
The Sala Constitucional (Constitutional Court) has upheld the
sanctions contained in the new Ley de Tránsito against drunk and
reckless drivers, saying the provisions in the law passed on
December 23, 2008, does not infringe on the principles of
proportionality and prejudice.
On January 22, 2009, judge David Hernández deferred the first "drunk
driving" trial under the new law to the Constitutional Court, saying
that he felt there were serious errors of constitutionality in the
new legislation.
One of the points in question by Hernández is that right of a driver
to have a blood test within 30 minutes of being stopped by a traffic
official and charged with drunk driving.
Under the old traffic laws, drivers were given a ticket and had
their vehicle or license plate confiscated, allowing the driver to
visit a clinic for the blood test to confirm or disprove the
breathalyzer test applied at the roadside. However, the new Ley de
Tránsito, allows traffic officials to detain the driver and hold him
or her for hearing before a judge, thus denying the right the blood
test.
Notwitstanding, the magistrates of the Sala Constitucional rejected
the arguments by Hernández and upheld the law.
The ministra de Obras Públicas y Transportes, Karla González,
displayed pleasure at the court ruling and considered it a victory
for the hard work that she and many others have put in to the making
of the law that gets tough on drunk and reckless drivers.
González began work on the law almost as soon as she took over her
portfolio in 2006 and had been very vocal against opponents and
fought intensely to have the law passed.
"This is a message by the Sala that says that absolutely the country
has an urgent need for tough laws and punishment for those who
insist on driving drunk. The Sala is giving us support for our
efforts to improve the quality of life for all Costa Ricans", said
González.
González added that now, with yesterday's court decision, the
sanctions against drunk and reckless drivers can be applied
immediately.
For their part, the Policia de Transito never gave up on applying
the drunk and reckless driving provisions even though the
application of such provisions hung in the air.
Now, all trials that had been suspended, waiting on the court
decision, will continue. |
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