교통사고 형사합의에 대한 법적 고찰

Abstract

According to the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Settlement of Traffic Accidents in Korea, a driver of a vehicle who causes injury of another by reason of a traffic accident shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than five years or by a fine not exceeding 20 million won. Generally the driver cannot be prosecuted against the express wills of the victims notwithstanding some specific cases where the driver causes the death or injury of victims due to traffic accidents by operating a vehicle in violation of signals, by operating a vehicle in excess of the speed limit by 20 km/h, by crossing a median line of the road, by operating of a vehicle without obtaining a driver's license or by operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol, etc. If there is a settlement between the driver and victims, the driver can be released without charge or will get lenient punishment. Since the victims will generally withdraw all civil and criminal lawsuits against the drivers in return for some (or a lot of) money under the settlement, the settlement can be an effective method to reduce criminal responsibility of the driver. This paper is analysing the Supreme Court's judgment on settlement of traffic accident and several debates relating to it, and it tries to provide an implication.