Joint Circular No. 10/TTLN-BNV-VKSNDTC-TANDTC guiding the handling of illegal motorbike racing behaviors

JOINT CIRCULAR

JOINT CIRCULAR NO. 10-TTLT OF THE MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS-NATIONAL PROSECUTION AUTHORITY-SUPREME PEOPLE'S COURT DATED DECEMBER 31, 1996 GUIDING THE HANDLING OF UNLAWFUL RACING ACTIVITIES

At present, unlawful racing activities, particularly motorcycle racing, are complex, causing public disorder, violating traffic regulations and urban traffic safety, threatening human lives and health, personal and organizational property, or state property. In recent times, the criminal handling by public security agencies, prosecution offices, and courts of such violations has not been consistent, leading to limitations in preventing these violations. Therefore, the Ministry of Home Affairs, National Prosecution Authority, and Supreme People's Court have unified guidance on handling unlawful racing activities as follows:

I. HANDLING OF UNLAWFUL RACING ACTIVITIES

1. Persons Engaged in Unlawful Racing

The person engaged in unlawful racing referred to herein is someone who controls a vehicle on a road with the purpose of racing against another driver without permission from the competent authority.

They are also considered as persons engaged in unlawful racing as accomplices to the organizer (principal, leader, commander) of the unlawful race; those who incite (those who instigate, entice, encourage) others to engage in unlawful racing; those who assist (those who create material or spiritual conditions) for unlawful racing; those sitting alongside the driver of the unlawful racing vehicle with the intent to race, such as: before getting on the vehicle or after getting on the vehicle, knowing that the driver will conduct the race but still sit with the intention to participate in the race; before getting on the vehicle or after getting on the vehicle, not knowing that the driver will conduct the race, but after the driver conducts the race, they perform acts of cheering, shouting...

Those who, after getting on the vehicle, still do not know that the driver will conduct the race, but during the journey, the driver conducts the race and the passenger must remain seated on the vehicle without performing acts of cheering, shouting... are not considered as persons engaged in unlawful racing.

2. Regarding Criminal Charges.

a) All cases of unlawful racing involving two or more vehicles are considered acts of disrupting public order, and persons engaged in unlawful racing shall be held criminally responsible for the crime of disrupting public order under Clause 1, Article 198 of the Penal Code.

- Organizers of unlawful races and those who incite others to engage in unlawful racing shall be held criminally responsible under Clause 2, Article 198 of the Penal Code.

b) If persons engaged in unlawful racing cause damage to the lives or health of others or serious damage to property due to negligence, in addition to being held criminally responsible under Clause 1, Article 198 of the Penal Code (if there is organizing or inciting behavior, they shall be held criminally responsible under Clause 2, Article 198 of the Penal Code), they shall also be held criminally responsible under Article 186 of the Penal Code.

c) If persons engaged in unlawful racing cause damage to the lives or health of others or serious damage to property due to intentional fault, in addition to being held criminally responsible under Article 198 of the Penal Code, they shall also be held criminally responsible under the corresponding provisions of the Penal Code regarding other crimes (Articles 101, 109, 138, or 160).

d) If persons engaged in unlawful racing do so for the purpose of winning money or goods, in addition to being held criminally responsible under Clause 1 or Clause 2, Article 198 of the Penal Code, they shall also be held criminally responsible under Article 200 of the Penal Code.

đ) If persons engaged in unlawful racing commit acts against law enforcement officers, in addition to being held criminally responsible under Clause 2, Article 198 of the Penal Code, they shall also be held criminally responsible for the crime of resisting law enforcement officers under Article 205 of the Penal Code.

e) If persons engaged in unlawful racing commit acts against law enforcement officers resulting in injury or death of the officers, in addition to being held criminally responsible under Clause 2, Article 198 of the Penal Code, based on specific circumstances, they shall also be held criminally responsible under the corresponding provisions (Articles 101, 109) of the Penal Code.

3. Handling of Vehicles Used for Unlawful Racing and Driving Licenses

a) Handling of Vehicles Used for Unlawful Racing.

- For vehicles used for unlawful racing owned by the person engaging in the race, they shall be confiscated and turned over to the state treasury (as stipulated in Point a, Clause 1, Article 33 of the Penal Code and Point a, Clause 2, Article 58 of the Criminal Procedure Code).

- For vehicles used for unlawful racing that are not owned or legally managed by the person engaging in the race, the following measures shall be taken depending on specific circumstances:

+ If the owner knows that the person engaging in the race uses their vehicle for racing and still lends it or allows its use (for example, the vehicle belongs to parents, and parents lend it to children who then use it for unlawful racing; parents know but continue to allow children to use it leading to further unlawful racing), the vehicle shall be confiscated and turned over to the state treasury (as stipulated in Point b, Clause 1, Article 58 of the Criminal Procedure Code).

+ If the owner does not know that the person engaging in the race uses their vehicle for racing, the vehicle shall be returned to the owner (as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 33 of the Penal Code and Point b, Clause 2, Article 58 of the Criminal Procedure Code).

+ If the vehicle used for racing is stolen, it shall be returned to the owner or lawful manager (as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 33 of the Penal Code and Point b, Clause 2, Article 58 of the Criminal Procedure Code).

+ In cases where the owner or lawful manager of the vehicle used for racing cannot be identified, the vehicle shall be confiscated and turned over to the state treasury.

b) Regarding Driving Licenses.

In all cases, if persons engaged in unlawful racing have been issued driving licenses, their right to use such licenses shall be revoked.

4. Some Issues Concerning the Arrest, Temporary Detention, and Temporary Imprisonment of Persons Engaged in Unlawful Racing and the Seizure of Racing Vehicles.

In all cases, individuals engaged in illegal racing must be apprehended pursuant to Article 64 of the Criminal Procedure Code regarding the arrest of offenders caught in the act. The apprehension, temporary detention, and temporary imprisonment of individuals involved in illegal racing, as well as the confiscation of illegally raced vehicles, must comply with legal regulations.

II- RESPONSIBILITIES OF POLICE ORGANIZATIONS, PEOPLE'S PROSECUTIONS, AND PEOPLE'S COURTS

To contribute to combating the phenomenon of illegal racing, police organizations, people's prosecutions, and people's courts must resolutely handle this type of legal violation. Based on specific circumstances, certain cases should be identified as key cases and handled according to Circular Joint Inter-Ministerial No. 01/TTLN dated October 15, 1994, issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Supreme People's Procuracy, and the Supreme People's Court, titled "Guidelines for Handling Key Cases."

III- EFFECTIVE DATE OF IMPLEMENTATION

1- This Circular takes effect from the date of issuance.

2- For acts of illegal racing that were committed before the issuance of this Circular but whose investigation, prosecution, and trial had not been concluded prior to its issuance or commenced thereafter, this Circular shall apply during the investigation, prosecution, and trial.

3- For cases that have undergone first-instance and second-instance trials before the issuance of this Circular, if there has been an appeal seeking a harsher sentence, then the second-instance and supervisory review trials shall follow the guidelines set forth in this Circular.

4- For judgments that became legally binding prior to the issuance of this Circular and cases that were tried in accordance with previous guidelines, these guidelines shall not be applied in supervisory review appeals.

During the implementation of this Circular, if any issues arise, investigative, prosecutorial, and judicial agencies shall immediately report them to the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuracy, and the Ministry of Home Affairs for timely guidance.