In response to the Pierre Palmade case, author of an accident after consuming cocaine, the Minister of the Interior wants to toughen the legislation.
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Ua strong proposition in terms of road safety. The Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, declared on Sunday February 19 that anyone driving under the influence of narcotics or alcohol would automatically have the 12 points of their driving license withdrawn, a week after the accident caused by humorist Pierre Palmade under the influence of cocaine.
ROAD SAFETY :
— Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) February 19, 2023
I want to remove point deductions for speeding less than 5km/h and thus be understanding with those who work.
Conversely, I want to revoke the license of those who drive under drugs/alcohol because they are potential dangers.
“I propose the withdrawal of the 12 points from the driving license for anyone who drives while using drugs”, declared the minister in an interview with the Sunday newspaper, specifying that “the loss of the permit is automatic only in recidivism today”. The Minister of the Interior also indicated that he was in favor of removing points from the driving license for speeding less than 5 km/h.
Currently, driving under the use of narcotics is punishable by the loss of six points. Additional penalties can also lead to a suspension of the permit for a maximum of three years and a cancellation of the permit with a maximum of three years’ prohibition on applying for a new permit.
READ ALSOPierre Palmade accident: “Cocaine is no longer the drug of the elite”
Checks doubled in 2022
Gérald Darmanin also wants to “make it compulsory for any proven drug user to have a medical examination so that he can drive if he is taking treatment”, he said on Twitter. “There are no recreational drugs: there are only lethal drugs. About 600 people die each year in narcotics-related road accidents,” he added on the social network, relaying the interview.
There are no recreational drugs: only deadly drugs. About 600 people die each year in drug-related road accidents.
— Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) February 18, 2023
I propose to strengthen the penalties against drivers who drive under the influence of drugs��@leJDD https://t.co/yAIeIlLDji
Based on the proposal of associations, he also says he is working “with Éric Dupond-Moretti to rename fatal accidents due to drugs and alcohol as ‘road homicide'”. A total of 800,000 “drug” roadside checks took place in 2022, “double the previous years”. “I gave the instruction to do 1 million this year”, he declared in this interview, assuring that “16% of controls for the use of narcotics while driving turned out to be positive against 3% of those concerning alcohol.
READ ALSOPalmade case: “chemsex”, a dangerous practice
Pierre Palmade tested positive for cocaine following a road accident which, in addition to the actor, seriously injured three – a man, his son and his pregnant sister-in-law who lost her baby – who occupied the car hit by the actor on February 10 in Seine-et-Marne. The comedian was indicted on Friday for homicide and involuntary injuries and assigned to the hospital with an electronic bracelet.