Drink driver who dented other car while parallel parking gets jail after prosecution appeals

SINGAPORE: A drink driver who scratched and dented another car while reversing into a parallel parking lot had his fine replaced with two weeks' jail after the prosecution appealed.

In a judgment released on Wednesday (May 3), Justice See Kee Oon found that the lower court's sentence of a fine for careless driving was "manifestly inadequate".

The driver, Cheng Chang Tong, pleaded guilty to two charges in a district court.

He was sentenced to a fine of S$4,000 and 30 months' driving ban for careless driving, and another S$7,000 fine and three years' driving ban for drink driving.

A third charge for failing to inform the victim of the damage and provide his particulars was considered in sentencing.

Cheng, who was 59 at the time of the offences, had admitted to drinking four small glasses of "Chivas" at his shop at Upper Bukit Timah Road on the night of Feb 5, 2022, before driving home to Block 220 Petir Road.

He was reversing into a parallel parking lot when he collided with the right side of the victim's car, which was parked ahead.

Both cars were damaged, with scratches and dents on the rear of the victim's car.

The victim discovered the damage about two hours later and called the police. Cheng failed a breathalyser test both at his home and at the Traffic Police Headquarters.

Cheng later paid for the victim's repairs, which cost S$2,400.

REPEAT OFFENDER

In its appeal, the prosecution said the S$4,000 fine was manifestly inadequate. It had sought three weeks' jail and three years' disqualification for the careless driving offence.

Cheng, who was unrepresented, said he was advanced in age, adding that he had since sold his car and stopped driving. He said he understood that drink driving was wrong and sought the court's forgiveness, claiming to have "many things to attend to outside" and a recent diagnosis of nerve issues in his hand.

Justice See said that Cheng is considered both a serious offender and a repeat offender, as he had two prior convictions in 1998 and 2004 for speeding.

He pointed to the aggravating factors in the case, including the high alcohol level and the serious potential harm. The lower court judge had found that potential harm would not have been serious.

Justice See found that the district judge had not adequately considered that there could have been serious potential harm from Cheng driving under the influence of alcohol.

He drove at least 1.6km from Upper Bukit Timah Road to Petir Road, through a residential area near other vehicles and pedestrians, with his wife in the car.

There was also damage to property, and Justice See found that the lower court judge had incorrectly placed the case in a less serious band of the sentencing framework.

Justice See also found that the district judge had not considered "the full gamut" of other compounded offences Cheng committed, such as speeding in 1990, 1995, 1998 and 2007, inconsiderate driving in 2012 and crossing double white lines in 2020.

As for the failure to inform the victim of the damage, Cheng had claimed to have "waited a while" and could not write a note as he was illiterate.

However, Justice See said this was an attempt to downplay the related charge and must be rejected.