Motorcycle rider signals turn twice, refuses sobriety test, court revokes 180,000 NT dollar fine
Keywords: Taitung Police Department, High Administrative Court of Kaohsiung, Road Traffic Bureau, sobriety test, turn signal, fine, administrative lawsuit
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Wednesday, 06 August 2025
A woman in Taitung was stopped by police for signaling a turn twice while riding a motorcycle and was asked to take a sobriety test. After refusing, she was fined 180,000 NT dollars. The woman was dissatisfied and filed an administrative lawsuit. Ultimately, the court ruled that the woman's use of the turn signal was appropriate and that her refusal to take the sobriety test was justified, revoking the fine.
According to the judgment of the High Administrative Court of Kaohsiung, the police from the Taitung Police Department believed the woman violated Article 42 of the Road Traffic Regulations by not using the turn signal as required, and therefore stopped her and requested a sobriety test. The woman refused the sobriety test and was fined 180,000 NT dollars. Dissatisfied with the decision, she filed a petition with the traffic administration and the Taitung Police Department, but it was rejected. She then filed an administrative lawsuit with the administrative court.
The woman's defense lawyer pointed out that the woman only continuously displayed the right turn signal for a short period and over a short distance, and did not create any unpredictable risk for the vehicles behind. Moreover, the location of the stop was private land, and the police stopped her only after she turned right into the private land, which violated the Police Service Regulations.
The court ruled that after the woman's first right turn, excluding the distance required to straighten the motorcycle handlebar, the distance to the second turn was clearly less than 50 meters. Therefore, it was impossible to distinguish where the correct location was to turn off and on the right turn signal. The court considered that it was reasonable for the woman not to turn off the right turn signal after the first right turn and then turn it on before the second right turn. The court ruled that the woman's use of the turn signal did not cause any harm, so the police stop was illegal and the woman's refusal to take the sobriety test was justified, revoking the original penalty.
