Death sentence for driver who killed6 persons

From:Shanghai Daily  Update: 2015-09-10

A driver who killed six pedestrians when he was heading home after drinking with friends in Bengbu, a city in eastChina’s Anhui Province, has been sentenced to death, according to a report in the Anhui Business News.

Bengbu Intermediate Peoples’ Court heard that Chen Yun was driving at around 108 kilometers per hour, more than double the speed limit, on December 26 last year when he swerved to avoid a jaywalker and collided with the six pedestrians.

He called an ambulance but their injuries were such that none survived. Later that night he handed himself into police. A blood test showed he was more than three times over the drink driving limit.

The court ruled that the death penalty was final because of the number of victims involved and because he had failed to show a positive attitude regarding compensation.

In previous, similar cases, death sentences had been reduced to life in prison in the light of the accused’s willingnessto pay substantial compensation to the victims’ families.

Chen’s mother said the family had paid each family 23,000 yuan (US$3,600) to cover funeral expenses. But they were unhappy with the amount and urged the court to impose the death penalty, the newspaper reported.

In February 2007, Li Jingquan was sentenced to death after he killed two people in a drunk driving incident. InJuly 2009, Sun Weiming received the same sentence after killing four people when he was drunk at the wheel.

In both cases the death penalty was commuted to life imprisonment following the payment of substantial compensation and the fact that they had been forgiven by victims’ families.