| Abstract [eng] |
This Master’s thesis analyses specifics of criminal liability for driving under the influence of alcohol. In order to clarify them, the conception of the selected objective elements (drunkenness, motor vehicle, failure to provide specimen when the person has been found to be drunk and consumption of alcohol after the car accident before the circumstances of it have been revealed) and the subjective elements (the subject and mens rea) of the criminal offence, established in Article 2811 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Lithuania, are being examined. Above-mentioned elements have been analysed on the basis of both Lithuanian legal acts and doctrinal sources relevant to the issue, as well as relevant jurisprudence, where the crucial problematic points have been identified. The Master’s thesis also addresses the important and scientifically captivating issue of the specifics of the application of drink-driving as an feature of other criminal offences. The driving under the influence of alcohol criminal offence, although a qualifying element of the separate criminal offence under Article 281 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Lithuania, is being qualified separately by applying the rule of ideal concurrence of the offences. Nevertheless, driving under the influence of alcohol is also an important factor while deciding the validity of classifying a fatal road accident as a murder with indirect intent. This feature is crucial for such tough justification of the qualification of the offence. However, it cannot be assessed in a one-sided manner without taking into account other circumstances, which are relevant to the qualification. Moreover, according to the examples of case law, one of the most common criminal legal consequences of the application of Article 2811 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Lithuania has been analysed – confiscation of the vehicle or its value. The decision not to apply this measure of penal effect shall be made in exceptional cases, taking into account all the facts, established in the particular criminal case, and the importance of the principle of proportionality. |
