Rear-end collision contact accident... Victim driver reports
Pitcher Lee Mideum from the same team was a passenger during the accident
A baseball player belonging to the LG Twins was booked by the police for drunk driving after causing an accident while driving under the influence.
On the 14th, the Seongnam Jungwon Police Station announced that they had booked Lee Sang-young (23), a player of the LG Twins, on charges of violating the Road Traffic Act (drunk driving). Lee is accused of causing a collision accident by hitting the rear bumper of the vehicle ahead while driving under the influence around 6:13 a.m. in Jungwon-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi Province. At the time of the accident, another player from the same team, sidearm pitcher Lee Mideum (24), was riding in Lee’s vehicle.
After the accident, Lee showed his ID to the owner of the damaged vehicle, a man in his 50s named Mr. A, allowing him to verify his identity and provided his contact information, then left the scene saying, "I will handle the accident later." Subsequently, Mr. A suspected that Lee had caused the accident while driving under the influence and reported it to 112. The police found Lee around 7:47 a.m. the same day at a drowsiness prevention center in Icheon-si, Gyeonggi Province. The blood alcohol concentration measured by the police from the Icheon Police Station at the scene was confirmed to be at the license cancellation level. The case will be transferred to the Seongnam Jungwon Police Station, which has jurisdiction over the area where the incident occurred, for further investigation.
Lee is currently a member of the LG Twins’ second team. Since he handled the aftermath at the accident scene, it is unlikely that he will face charges for fleeing the scene. The police also plan to investigate the passenger for aiding and abetting drunk driving.
The LG team issued an apology and reported the incident to the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) Clean Baseball Center. The team stated that they will accept all disciplinary measures once the KBO’s decision is announced. In their apology, LG said, "We sincerely apologize to our fans," and added, "We deeply acknowledge our responsibility for managing the players." They further stated, "The team will humbly accept the disciplinary results from the KBO Disciplinary Committee and will do their best to prevent recurrence in the future."
The KBO has disciplinary regulations regarding drunk driving. A license suspension results in a 70-game suspension, license cancellation leads to a one-year disqualification, a second drunk driving offense results in a five-year disqualification, and three or more offenses lead to permanent disqualification. However, there are no specific disciplinary regulations concerning passengers riding in a vehicle driven by a drunk driver. If Lee Sang-young is disciplined according to KBO regulations, he is expected to lose his player eligibility for one year. Lee, who was discharged from military service, was a highly anticipated left-handed bullpen pitcher. Last year, he recorded a 3.27 ERA with 1 loss in 6 games, and this season, he has a 3.31 ERA with 1 loss and 1 hold in 8 games. In June, he appeared as a substitute starter in 3 games, pitching a total of 13 innings and allowing 3 runs.
Meanwhile, the LG Twins have recently faced consecutive setbacks due to members’ drunk driving incidents. Former LG coach Choi Seung-jun was arrested on July 29 for refusing a police breathalyzer test while driving under the influence (refusal of alcohol measurement under the Road Traffic Act). Subsequently, LG terminated their contract with Coach Choi and issued an apology.
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