Three Pedestrians Dead in Alleged Sudden Acceleration by Taxi Driver... Acquitted in First Trial

"Passenger Testified Sudden Unintended Acceleration at the Time... Hard to Conclude Driver's Negligence"

A taxi driver who caused the deaths of three people by crashing into a crosswalk was acquitted in the first trial.

On the 27th, the Gwangju District Court Criminal Division 11 (Presiding Judge Kim Seong-jun) announced that it had acquitted Mr. A (70), who was indicted for violating the Special Act on Traffic Accident Handling.

Asia Economy DB

Taxi driver Mr. A was brought to trial on charges of hitting and killing three pedestrians on a crosswalk at an intersection in Songjeong-dong, Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, at around 1:23 p.m. on October 8, 2023.

Mr. A entered the intersection during a red light, collided with an oncoming passenger car, and then rushed onto the crosswalk.

During the investigation, Mr. A claimed that he could not control the vehicle due to sudden unintended acceleration of the electric car. However, the police requested a detailed inspection of the vehicle from the National Forensic Service, and based on the analysis that there was no record of the braking system being activated, concluded that the accident was due to driver negligence.

However, the first trial court stated, "According to the vehicle's Event Data Recorder (EDR) information, the vehicle's speed and engine RPM abnormally increased from three seconds before the accident," and judged, "It is unlikely that the defendant, who has driven a taxi for a long time, accidentally pressed the accelerator pedal strongly instead of the brake pedal for more than three seconds."

Furthermore, the court said, "Considering the passenger's statement that 'just before the accident, a sudden loud exhaust noise was heard, the speed increased, and the vehicle seemed to bounce forward, leading to the belief that it was sudden unintended acceleration,' it is difficult to conclude that the accident was caused by the defendant's negligence," and added, "There is no evidence to support such a conclusion."