A sobering change to the law

Since China added a provision about drunk driving to its Criminal Law last year, the crime has become increasingly controversial. The drunk driver who killed three people in February, once again thrust the issue into the spotlight, leaving some to question whether people should be held responsible for the actions of their drinking buddies. Do you have to stop a drunk friend from driving?

Although the law doesn't stipulate a punishment for allowing an intoxicated friend to get behind the wheel, authorities in some cities are considering doing just that.

Police in Jinan, Shandong Province, for example, said in early February that those who don't try to stop a drunk person from driving, will be culpable and police will inform their employers to have them "educated."

In a civil suit last October, a local Shanghai court ruled a man to compensate a dead driver's family for failing to stop him from getting behind the wheel.

Some might say that this is an effective way to prevent drunk driving, since one's friends would be in the best position to know whether he or she was too drunk to drive. They could then try to talk their friend out of driving home.

This was all suggested under the backdrop of an alarming number of drunk driving cases over the past few years. It's understandable that authorities and the public want the drunk drivers punished, and punished severely.

However, I doubt this is feasible. What if you don't know the people you shared a bottle of wine with? What if the drunk friend later says you never tried to stop him? Who should the police believe? What if no one is sober enough to step in as the responsible party.

There's no doubt that friends and co-drinkers should at least persuade drunk friends not to drive home, but it's not fair to hold them responsible, since they don't really have any authority to stop their friend.

It also raises the question that if their friend insists on drinking and driving, how hard should they try to stop him or her? They are not the police. They don't have a duty to forcibly prevent someone else from committing a crime.

In some cases, it might be worse if you insist on stopping your intoxicated friend from driving.

Also in October of last year, a man in Shanghai got into his car in the wee hours after drinking 250 grams of Chinese rice wine. Two of his friends attempted to stop him and were run over for their trouble. They both succumbed to their injuries. The man fled the scene, and later had hairy crabs in nearby Kunshan.

Some might argue that if not stopped, the man could end up hurting more people. In that case, he is responsible for his actions, since he could have called a taxi to drive him home at any point in the evening, even before he raised his first glass.

The new amendment of the Criminal Law should be effective at preventing drunk driving. Statistics show that 312 offenders were charged with drunk driving in Shanghai last year. The law needs more time to evolve to become more effective. And so does the local drinking culture.