Court Acknowledges National Forensic Service's Assessment:
"No Defect in Braking System"
The driver of vehicle number 60 involved in the 'Seoul City Hall Station Wrong-Way Driving Accident,' which resulted in 9 deaths last July, was sentenced to 7 years and 6 months in prison in the first trial.
Presiding Judge Lee Chun-geun of the Criminal Division 1 at the Seoul Central District Court sentenced Cha Mo (69), who was detained and prosecuted on charges of violating the Special Act on the Treatment of Traffic Accidents (causing death and injury). Previously, the prosecution requested the maximum penalty of 7 years and 6 months imprisonment. Imprisonment involves confinement in prison like a jail sentence but does not include forced labor.
The court stated the sentencing rationale, saying, "Due to the defendant's negligence, an irreversible serious outcome occurred with 9 deaths and 5 injuries. The bereaved families have petitioned for severe punishment, and the defendant denies the crime and shows no remorse, so a severe punishment commensurate with the guilt is necessary."
It added, "The defendant has not reached a settlement with the victims, and no evidence has been submitted to show that he apologized to the bereaved families or made efforts to restore the damage."
Cha was tried on charges of driving out of the underground parking lot near the Westin Chosun Hotel near City Hall Station in Jung-gu, Seoul, at around 9:26 p.m. on July 1 last year, driving in the wrong direction and crashing onto the sidewalk, resulting in 9 deaths and 5 injuries.
Cha consistently claimed sudden unintended acceleration immediately after the incident, but the prosecution judged it to be an accident caused by mistakenly pressing the accelerator pedal. At the sentencing hearing held earlier, the prosecution said, "Considering the seriousness of the crime, the extent of the damage, and the petitions for severe punishment, it is appropriate to request a heavier sentence, but since the legal maximum penalty is 7 years and 6 months, we request this sentence."
The court stated that there was no suspicious circumstance to doubt the forensic results from the National Forensic Service, which concluded that "according to the Event Data Recorder (EDR) and black box footage, there was no defect in the braking system of Cha's vehicle, and the accident occurred as he repeatedly pressed and released the accelerator pedal instead of the brake pedal while driving."
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