[Asia Economy Reporter Bae Kyunghwan] The prosecution has filed an appeal after a mother, who was tried for leaving her child behind in a burning house causing the child's death, was acquitted in both the first and second trials.
According to the legal community on the 30th, the prosecution, dissatisfied with the appellate court ruling for A (24), who was indicted for violating the Special Act on the Punishment of Child Abuse Crimes (child abuse resulting in death), submitted a notice of appeal to the Seoul High Court Criminal Division 13 (Presiding Judges Choi Suhwan, Choi Seongbo, and Jeong Hyunmi).
In April 2019, A left her son sleeping alone on the master bedroom bed with an electric heating pad turned on, fell asleep in another room, and when a fire broke out, she opened the front door to let out smoke. However, by the time she went to the master bedroom, the flames and smoke had intensified, and she was unable to rescue the child. The prosecution charged A with failing to fulfill her duty of care and evacuating alone, resulting in the child's death.
The first trial court, based on CCTV footage and simulation results at the time of the fire, ruled in favor of A, stating, "It is difficult to see that the baby was left unattended during the fire." The court found it hard to conclude that the defendant could have easily rescued the victim without hesitation, even if the door handle was not hot when opened and the victim's face was visible. The second trial court also upheld the first trial's judgment as appropriate.
Meanwhile, the prosecution argued in court, "The distance between the defendant and the victim was only 2 meters during the fire, and in such a situation, it is common to take the baby and escape, but the defendant evacuated alone, leading to the victim's death."
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