Cancun, Q.R. — Citizens caught driving under the influence of alcohol could soon be able to choose their punishment, says a councilor of Cancun city hall.
Clara Emilia Díaz Aguilar says that el Cabildo is currently analyzing and is soon to approve a proposal that would allow citizens found driving under the influence of alcohol to choose between community service or jail time.
The community service would consist of things such as street and park cleaning or sargasso cleaning along beaches instead of serving jail time.
Clara Emilia Díaz Aguilar explained that “Now, every citizen who commits an infraction and does not have the money to pay his fine will go to a community work program where he will pay his infraction, but through social work.”
She does clarify that being able to choose between community service and jail time will depend on the degree of intoxication of the driver. She also says they are considering the option of allowing another person to retrieve the seized vehicle (to take home) rather than having it towed to the corralón, but that has not yet been decided.
Díaz Aguilar added that allowing people to choose between community service and jail time at El Torito would ease the load on the already overloaded jail system and ensure those caught driving under the influence pay their debt to society rather than talk their way out of it, which has been a problem in the past.
