Driver held after car hits 5 students on bicycles

Well done his wife. It was probably habitual behaviour on his part and she knew it was time to act.

@Yokatta, difficult to rad if you are being sincere but I totally agree with your sentiment if you are in fact supporting her for reporting this loser for getting stupidly drunk then driving a vehicle on a public highway. I hope they throw the book, heavy and hard, at the selfish idiot. Get well soon girls.

I hate the hit and run mentality of Japan :(

As much as a wife or husband's responsibility is to support them no matter what...I respect the wife for reporting this. Makes me wonder how many other drunk fools drive around these roads.Hope this guy gets a sharp and painful punishment. Next time I hope he hangs.

What an idiot. Glad none of the girls were seriously injured, although having a broken leg sucks.

Hope he pays through the nose for her medical care.

Don't know the character of the wife or the relationship, but she did the right thing. Glad none of the injuries were life-threatening, and hope this guy does a nice little stint in the slammer to 'sleep it off'.

Yacchimatta in Yachimata... :-(

See! This is what you get when you falsely believe heavy fines will deter drink drivers

DUI accidents have been low for a very long time, even before the no tolerance policy. At this point you could threaten death and still not make a dent in the small percentage of DUI accidents. If you want to live in a police state, I am sure there is one that already exists that you could leave for and be happy. But we would break the bank enlisting enough cops to do as you suggest and we would be living in a much poorer police state.

What I think you need to realize is that there are a small number of alcoholics who are simply not in control of themselves. I think its sad that those few idiots have become the poster boy for people like myself who used to drink and drive within previous legal limits just fine.

Of course, he didn't remember a thing..right?

Chiba?? Ah yes!! Many idiot drivers there! Good job on his wife!! I hope she divorced this idiot!!

the hit and run thing is all i'm seeing these days.

Anybody who thinks the # of drivers who drink & drive is low must live in the city because once your outside there are a great many who drink & drive in urban & rural areas, hell the ramen joint 3min walk from my place I wud bet has 10-20cars a nite drive away that should be calling cabs!

I commend his wife, whether she likes her husband or not.

Yet another hit-and-run. Get well soon.

Damn, I was at this festival. Strange atmosphere. Lots of HS kids and younger drinking and smoking around the station, literally 3 or 4 metres away from a bunch of police. Nothing at all was done. Cars went past fast in a pedestrianised zone near lots of people wandering around the roads and a few half-hearted police whistles were heard. I'm not surprised to hear this news unfortunately.

Respect to the wife for doing the right thing. Her husband would have killed someone next time. I hope these poor girls make a full recovery. As for Mooroka - there are no excuses. Hitting five children and not caring about their welfare is unforgivable. Throw the book at him. 10 years inside and a lifetime ban from driving would be a bare minimum.

Cars in Japan are way too close to where pedestrians walk. They were on bikes but the space between cars and pedestrians can be only about 12 inches.

And, I bet the girls were riding 3 abreast at night with no lights on their bicycles. I don't condone what the man did, but people on bikes should obey traffic rules- for their own safety as well.

They were actually riding on the wrong side of the road, towards oncoming traffic. Stupid and dangerous, but that doesn't excuse the driver at all.

smithinjapan: What really is crap about this, is that he'll say "he was drunk" so doesn't remember hitting them. Is very very sorry, will bow, maybe cry, give some presents to the girls and NOTHING WILL HAPPEN or a suspended sentence and not allowed to drive for 6 months.

The justice system in Japan is stupid, it never takes into account the seriously of the crime at the time and only looks at how much remorse the perpetrator shows to the court and the victims AFTER THE FACT.

See! This is what you get when you falsely believe heavy fines will deter drink drivers. There should have been police at every car park exit of the festival checking these fools and these kids would not be in hospital! I have no objections to living in a so-called 'police state' cos it is only the irresponsible rat bags that are penalized. Lift your game Japanese police! Enforce the law instead of advertising it!

The man driving was clearly at fault here, but I have to say that it is not difficult to imagine a person who was not intoxicated hitting a group of girls riding bicycles. I was riding my bicycle yesterday when I came upon a flock of girls who took up the whole road. There must have been 15 of them. The road we were on was incredibly windy and had mirrors which people sometimes rely on too much. A car going the opposite direction had to slam on his brakes when he saw them and only barely avoided a collision. I say barely because the girls almost ran into the car even though it had stopped. Sometimes when a group of students get together they completely ignore the rules of the road which is potentially lethal.

Since I am an outsider to this situation, I am glad he was arrested.

For real though, how many of you support your wife calling the police if she finds you drunk in your car? This is without her knowing that you hit someone and her asking you what happened first.

I don't think the wife reported him because he was drunk I think she did it because she wasn't aware of where the damage came from

Well done wife! At least someone in the family showed some brains. I agree that he should get jail time (hit & run) and lose his privilege of driving for a long enough time to prove beyond doubt that he has given up drinking (years if ever). His low moral character was shown by leaving the scene of an accident . He does not deserve the high quality wife that he has!

By all means drunk driving must be eradicated whether it means more checkpoints by police. The fact that the wife reported it immediately to police without sheltering the husband is remarkable.

Under Japanese law, what she did was quite logical. The penalties differ greatly depending on whether you turn yourself in or whether they have to seek you out. The household looses under any scenario, but this would be the least bad.

Well, the police will let him go after he says, " Gomenasai " to much and beat his wife up.

His wife should file for divorce !!! And disappear.

And, I bet the girls were riding 3 abreast at night with no lights on their bicycles. I don't condone what the man did, but people on bikes should obey traffic rules- for their own safety as well.

I come across them all the time when I am driving and they just don't budge and make you pass on the other side of the road. On the other hand, most boys on their bikes ride in single file and pay more attention to the cars coming from the rear.

Nice wife...