Office worker fined W20m for driving to work hungover after drinking until 3 a.m.

A man in his 30s who drove to work while still hungover after drinking into the early morning hours has been fined 20 million won ($12,900).

Judge Lee Jae-wook of the Ulsan District Court's Criminal Division 3 sentenced the man, identified only as A, to the fine on charges of violating the Road Traffic Act, the court announced Saturday.

A was caught at a sobriety checkpoint on a road in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, in February after driving about 18 kilometers with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.051 percent. He had been drinking until 3 a.m. that day, slept briefly, and then got behind the wheel on his morning commute.

Prosecutors sought a prison term, noting that A had previously received a suspended sentence for drunk driving and other offenses yet reoffended.

The court opted for a fine instead, taking into account that the offense involved residual alcohol from the night before and that his blood alcohol level fell within the license-suspension range of 0.03 percent to just under 0.08 percent.

"We considered whether a prison sentence was necessary to prevent reoffending, but took into account that the defendant showed remorse, that his blood alcohol concentration was relatively low, and that the alcohol consumed in the early morning hours had simply lingered until he was stopped," the court said.