[On-site Video] "Judge, You Made a Wrong Judgment!" Sentence Reduced in 'Jeong-in Case' 2nd Trial... Citizens' 'Anger'

[Asia Economy Reporter Seunggon Han, Intern PD Hyewon Lim] "Does this even make sense!" , "What kind of law is this!"

Jang, the adoptive mother (35) who was sentenced to life imprisonment in the first trial for abusing and causing the death of 16-month-old adopted child Jeong-in, had her sentence reduced to 35 years in the appellate court. Citizens mourning Jeong-in expressed their outrage in front of the courthouse. Some citizens collapsed and sobbed, strongly criticizing the court.

The Seoul High Court Criminal Division 7 (Chief Judge Seong Suje) sentenced Jang, who was detained and indicted on charges including murder and habitual child abuse, to 35 years in prison on the 26th. The adoptive father Ahn, who was charged with child abuse, was sentenced to 5 years in prison, the same as in the first trial.

The court stated regarding Jang, "The defendant shows remorse and self-reproach for her actions," and added, "It is difficult to see that she was unaware that her actions were wrong or that she had an attitude hostile to the basic ethical norms of the social community, as she took the victim to the hospital." Furthermore, "It cannot be said that there is no possibility of improving her personality issues through long-term imprisonment, and it is difficult to definitively conclude that there is a risk of reoffending after release."

Additionally, the court emphasized, "Social outrage is not only due to the horrific abuse and murder of the child victim by the defendant but also because the social protection system for child protection did not function properly," and added, "To prevent child abuse, social efforts must be made in parallel to improve and supplement the child protection system so that it operates thoroughly and reliably."

Upon hearing the news of Jang’s reduced sentence, citizens gathered in front of the courthouse expressed their anger. Gong Hyejeong, president of the Korea Child Abuse Prevention Association, criticized, "This ruling fails to raise social awareness about child abuse," and said, "How cruelly must a baby be killed to receive life imprisonment or the death penalty? Does the court have the will to eradicate child abuse?"

Meanwhile, the adoptive parents did not issue any particular statement regarding the court’s verdict on that day.