20s Public Official Who Played YouTube and Speeded, Causing Death of Family, Sentenced to 10 Months Imprisonment

"Not Viewing but Listening" Claim Leads to 10-Month Imprisonment and Court Detention

A public official in his 20s who was playing a game-related YouTube video while speeding at over 87.5 km/h in a 60 km/h zone hit and killed an elderly man and his daughter-in-law crossing a crosswalk, resulting in his court imprisonment.

Crosswalk. The photo is not directly related to the content of the article.

On the 12th, Judge Hwang Hae-cheol of the Chuncheon District Court Wonju Branch Criminal Division 3 sentenced A, a public official in his mid-20s who was indicted without detention on charges of violating the Special Act on Traffic Accident Handling (causing death), to 10 months in prison and ordered his immediate detention in court. Earlier, A was accused of speeding between 87.5 and 93.6 km/h at an intersection in Hoengseong County, where the speed limit was 60 km/h, at around 6:12 p.m. on November 15 last year, hitting B (86) and his daughter-in-law C (59) who were crossing the crosswalk. B died on the spot, and C was seriously injured and transported to the hospital but died about an hour later.

At the time, it was confirmed that A was not under the influence of alcohol, but it was revealed that he was driving while playing a game-related YouTube video. The court reviewed the submitted black box footage and judged that A could have sufficiently noticed the victims who were slowly crossing the crosswalk from six seconds before the accident but neglected to watch the road ahead and continued speeding at over 87.5 km/h without significantly reducing speed.

However, during the trial, A claimed, "I only listened to the sound of the YouTube video." Judge Hwang stated, "It is unclear whether he watched the video, but it seems clear that playing the YouTube video was one of the causes of the defendant’s negligence in failing to watch the road ahead while speeding." He added, "Even considering that the victims’ families reached a settlement and do not wish for punishment, the defendant’s negligence in causing this accident is too severe. Strict punishment is inevitable for the wrongdoing that took two lives." Both A and the prosecution appealed the first trial verdict, citing unfair sentencing. Additionally, A has been suspended from his position, and disciplinary procedures are underway.