Why the Chalong Police don`t send the document to the Court yet ? Evidence!! you have 1 dead and you have the driver off the van so what the problem.

Posted by Bjorn Ronningen on April 7, 2014 17:43

Bjorn, the problem being that its involving the village headman, so of course will never see the full penalty.

Posted by LivinLOS on April 7, 2014 18:39

In Thailand relatives of a person deceased after a traffic accident or invalidated expect to be compensated regardless of who's fault the accident was. The compensations that are given in Court are very small so they demand more. I have heard of compensations ranging from 100,000 THB up...probably depending on how much they can get out of the other party. 900,000 THB as mentioned in this case is a very high amount ...Salary of a village headman is very low, less than 10k/month so he must have had other income sources or maybe a rich family.
The payment normally leads to that a pending case at Court is dropped.

Posted by Sailor on April 7, 2014 19:01

Editor, The money came from village headman Pradit Kongsanpipabab, owner of a vehicle involved in a collision at Chalong Circle so a thing hi is not so generous, He should pay this money fore loooong time ago.

Posted by Bjorn Ronningen on April 7, 2014 19:36

This is one of the fundamental problems plaguing the Thai legal system and mentality.

Paying compensation releases you from criminal liability.

That's not justice. It just means the rich can afford to break the law at will and pay their way out of trouble.

Police have way too much leeway in conducting the investigation and forwarding the case to the prosecutor.

Posted by ThaiMike on April 7, 2014 19:46

Death caused by a traffic accident is not necessarily a criminal offence, it may be negligence or purely an accident as both parties may have contributed.
Legal process does not require that every crime be prosecuted but is designed that an acceptable outcome is achieved towards those involved. Financial status cannot be considered against a person in determination of an offence otherwise there would be different fines or punishment depending on wealth.
What needs to be considered, whether that be right or wrong, is does the solution or agreement place the affected party in the best possible position to compensate for the loss or damage.
Would the family of the deceased be in a better position if the offender was jailed rather than provide compensation.. Probably not.
If the prosecution proceeded, is there a likely chance for it to be successful based on the evidence available. Can the prosecuter prove a deliberate action was the cause.
While the end result may not appear correct and both criminal and civil actions would be in the public interest, the compensation may just place the family in the best possible position available. The amount paid is not really the issue as it was accepted by the family however it may have been limited by their negotiation skills or advice received.
I don't agree with the outcome but I can see how the resolution was agreed.

Posted by Mango war on April 8, 2014 05:58