A mother in her 30s has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for driving while heavily intoxicated with her young daughters in the car, resulting in the death of a motorcyclist.
The Hongseong Branch of the Daejeon District Court, presided over by Judge Lim Hwi-jae, sentenced the 38-year-old defendant, identified as A, to 12 years in prison today (July 10). She was charged with violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Crimes (fatal hit-and-run and failure to take measures after an accident), drunk driving, and violating the Child Welfare Act (child abuse).
The court also ordered her to complete 80 hours of child abuse treatment.
A was brought to trial for driving her car at a speed of 178 km/h while intoxicated on a road in Hongbuk-eup, Hongseong-gun, Chungcheongnam-do, at approximately 9:20 p.m. this past January. She struck a motorcycle in front of her and fled the scene, leaving the motorcyclist, a man in his 20s identified as B, to die.
At the time, her two young daughters, aged 6 and 4, were in the vehicle. Prosecutors applied child abuse charges, arguing that A exposed her children to danger by speeding while in a state of extreme intoxication, with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.211%, well above the legal limit for license revocation.
A was driving at 178 km/h on a road with a speed limit of 60 km/h, exceeding the limit by 118 km/h.
B was a groom-to-be who was on his way home from work when the accident occurred. Investigations revealed that after the crash, A checked on B's condition but failed to report the accident or provide assistance. Instead, she reportedly shouted at B and witnesses, blaming them by saying things such as, "Isn't this because of you?" and "My children are shocked."
A claimed that she was too intoxicated to realize the victim had died and that she had no intention of fleeing, but the court rejected these arguments.
The court explained, "Looking at her overall behavior, such as talking to witnesses and others at the scene immediately after the accident, it is clear that she was fully aware that a traffic accident had occurred." The court added, "When police cars and ambulances arrived, A walked away from the scene without a word, and she was only tracked down after a witness spotted her and tipped off the police."
The court stated the reasons for the sentencing, saying, "She drove recklessly while heavily intoxicated, failed to provide aid to the victim despite being able to do so, and even shifted the blame for her actions onto others, making her culpability extremely high." The court further noted, "In particular, as a parent who should have protected her children, she engaged in reckless drunk driving, causing significant harm to their mental health and development, which is also a serious crime."