40-Year-Old Man Sentenced to Probation in 'Minsik Law' Case... How Did He Avoid Imprisonment?

Prosecutor Applied Special Act on Traffic Accident Handling Due to Absence of 'Min-sik Law' at Sentencing
'Min-sik Law' Enforced on 25th Last Month... Imprisonment for Fatal Accidents in School Zones

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] A man in his 40s who struck and killed the late Kim Min-sik (then 9 years old) at a crosswalk in a school zone, sparking the so-called "Min-sik Act" (a revised law related to child protection zones), has been sentenced to imprisonment without labor.

According to the strengthened Min-sik Act, this driver should have been sentenced to at least three years in prison or life imprisonment, but the lighter sentence than initially expected has drawn public attention.

The Cheonan Branch of Daejeon District Court, Criminal Division 2 (Judge Choi Jae-won), on the 27th, sentenced A (44), who was indicted for violating the Special Act on Traffic Accident Handling (causing death), to two years of imprisonment without labor. Imprisonment without labor involves detention in prison but does not require compulsory labor, distinguishing it from a prison sentence.

The court stated, "The accident site is a school zone with a two-lane road and a crosswalk, near a middle school, an elementary school, and apartments," and added, "The defendant hit the victim and applied the brakes late. If the brakes had been applied sooner, the death could have been prevented."

It continued, "The parents of Min-sik suffered severe mental distress and demand strict punishment for the defendant, and there are concerns about the aftereffects of the mental shock experienced by the victim’s younger sibling who was also involved in the accident," but also noted, "However, considering that the defendant has shown remorse and that the vehicle speed at the time was below the speed limit (30 km/h)," explaining the sentencing rationale.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

However, under the Min-sik Act, the driver should have been sentenced to a minimum of △ three years or more in prison △ or life imprisonment, not two years of imprisonment without labor.

As a result, some have expressed skepticism about the court’s ruling to impose imprisonment without labor instead of a prison sentence. This is the so-called "first case of punishment under the Min-sik Act."

The reason this driver was able to avoid the Min-sik Act is that the strengthened law, the "Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes," did not exist at the time of the trial.

Therefore, the prosecution could not apply the relevant penalty and instead charged the defendant under the existing "Special Act on Traffic Accident Handling (causing death)" and other charges, seeking the maximum penalty of five years imprisonment without labor. The court, considering sentencing conditions, sentenced the defendant to two years imprisonment without labor.

In summary, the man whose case triggered the Min-sik Act was actually punished under a different law because the relevant penalty did not exist at the time of the prosecution’s sentencing request.

However, since the Min-sik Act came into effect on the 25th of last month, drivers prosecuted for violations of related laws can be punished under the strengthened penalties.

A was indicted for an incident on September 11 last year at around 6:10 p.m., when he struck the Kim Min-sik brothers crossing a crosswalk in a school zone in front of an elementary school in Asan City, Chungnam Province. Kim Min-sik died, and his younger brother sustained injuries requiring two weeks of medical treatment.

This incident led to the passage of the "Min-sik Act," which strengthens penalties for perpetrators of child traffic accidents, and it is currently in effect.

On December 10 last year, the National Assembly held a plenary session and passed the "Min-sik Act," which mandates the installation of speed cameras in school zones. Kim Min-sik’s parents watched the bill’s passage from the gallery of the plenary session.

The Min-sik Act passed at the plenary session consists of two bills: the "Road Traffic Act Amendment" and the "Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes Amendment."

The Road Traffic Act Amendment mandates the installation of speed cameras in school zones and requires local governments to prioritize the installation of traffic lights, speed bumps, speed limits, and safety signs.

The Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes Amendment focuses on imposing heavier penalties on perpetrators of fatal accidents in school zones.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.