Ex-TV host Benedict Goh jailed 3 weeks for drink driving
By Claire Huang
Goh was given a custodial sentence of 3 weeks' jail, disqualified
from driving all classes of vehicles for 4 years and fined $800. --
ST PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG
FORMER TV host Benedict Goh, 37, has been jailed 3 weeks after
pleading guilty to drink driving and colliding into a stationary
car.
In court on Friday, he was also disqualified from driving all
classes of vehicles for 4 years.
For colliding into a broken down vehicle, Goh was fined $800.
And his lawyer Mr Lee Teck Leng said Goh is remorseful.
'Benedict deeply regrets the offences and acknowledges that drink
driving is very irresponsible, and he hopes others will learn from
his mistakes and not commit drink driving.'
Mr Lee added they have filed an appeal in court 'because there's
another case with similar facts that is actually on appeal right
now'.
He said that they felt it 'appropriate' to 'safeguard Benedict's
interests by actually filing a notice of appeal', so as 'to see how
that other appeal turns out' and take it into consideration.
District Judge Terence Chua when delivering judgement said that
drink driving is a serious offence, and 'the number of such
incidents has been rising steadily'. He also noted that 'drink
driving cases constitute a third of the traffic cases mentioned in
court'.
Concluding that this is not acceptable, he said that the court must
approach sentencing holistically.
A drink driving conviction calls for a mandatory jail term and
fine.
The judge added he took into consideration other mitigation factors
- there were no injuries, Goh gave his full cooperation and did not
flee the scene. It was also clearly an accident in which Goh was
taken by surprise.
However, the fact that Goh was not able to avoid hitting a
stationary vehicle even though he was driving a safe distance away,
the judge said, meant he was impaired by alcohol.
extracted from The Straits Times...
