Mykolaiv judges are in the top for closing cases of drunk driving

In recent years, many drunk drivers in Mykolaiv have avoided responsibility due to the leniency of judges who often dismiss cases due to lack of evidence. Most of these decisions are made by two judges who close more than half of drunk driving cases.

This was reported by Nikcenter.

Over the past five years in Ukraine, 22% of drivers accused of driving under the influence of alcohol have avoided punishment in the form of fines or deprivation of rights. The judge from Mykolaiv is among the thirty judges in Ukraine who most often dismiss administrative cases under Article 130 of the Code of Administrative Offenses on drunken driving.

In May 2025, the Zavodskyi District Court of Mykolaiv considered another case of drunken driving. Patrol policemen handed over a report against the driver of a Hyundai Accent, which was drawn up due to obvious signs of alcohol intoxication. According to the Drager test, the driver had 2 ppm of alcohol in his blood, which is roughly equivalent to a bottle of vodka.

The driver admitted the results of the analysis in the report, but in court his defense lawyer said that another man, an acquaintance of the suspect, was allegedly driving. Judge Zinaida Sukharevych closed the case due to the absence of an offense. She noted that the witness did not mention the name of the Hyundai driver in the video.

In five years, Zinaida Sukharevych has closed 58% of the 210 drunk driving cases she has considered. An analysis of the judge's rulings in 2024-2025 showed that the most common reason for closing cases was the absence of an offense.

In particular, last year, the judge closed the case of a well-known businessman in the region, Ihor Panasenko, director of the Volunteer Center on Soborna Street charity foundation. Patrol policemen drew up a report for driving a Volkswagen GOLF while intoxicated, but the driver refused to take the Drager test and be hospitalized. In court, he stated that he was not driving the car, but was only talking to a woman in the car when the police approached. The judge also recognized the insufficiency of evidence, as the video did not confirm that the businessman was driving.

Closing cases due to the lack of corpus delicti, in particular because of judges' doubts about the body camera footage of patrol officers, has become the most common reason for drunk drivers to avoid responsibility.

The list of judges who show leniency to drunk drivers also includes Oleh Kyrylchuk, a judge of Mykolaiv's Ingulsky District Court. He closed 76% of the 220 drunk driving cases he considered, and this data covers only two years of work.

Recently, Oleksandr Savin, a judge of the South Ukrainian City Court in Mykolaiv Oblast, was temporarily suspended from his duties for refusing to take an alcohol test and numerous violations of the law. He has previously been reprimanded for violating financial control and ethical rules.

Анна Бальчінос