Court Fines Dog Owner Again in 2nd Trial for Not Using Muzzle on Pungsan Dog That Bit a Person

The Pungsan dog gifted by Kim Jong-un, Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of North Korea, and its puppy Haetnime is undergoing training. (Not related to the article content)

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] The dog owner who did not put a muzzle on his Pungsan dog and caused it to bite a neighboring resident was sentenced to a fine again in the appellate court.

According to the legal community on the 27th, the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Appeal Division 1-2 (Presiding Judges Song Hye-young, Jo Jung-rae, Kim Jae-young) sentenced A (32), who was indicted for negligence causing injury, to a fine of 2 million won, the same as in the first trial.

The court stated, "It cannot be considered that there is no duty of care to prevent accidents in advance through muzzles or other means just because the defendant's dog is not classified as a dangerous dog."

A was indicted for causing an injury requiring three weeks of medical treatment by allowing his Pungsan dog to bite B (23) on the left side of the torso in July 2018 while walking without a muzzle on the dog he was raising.

At that time, B was attacked while trying to stop A's dog from lunging at his own pet dog, according to the investigation.

A's Pungsan dog is a large dog weighing about 26 kg, and it is known that A himself was bitten several months earlier, resulting in a hole in his thumb.

In the trial, A's side argued that since the Pungsan dog is not included in the current Animal Protection Act's list of "dangerous dogs," there is no obligation to put a muzzle on it.

Under the current law, dangerous dogs include five breeds: Tosa Inu, American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire Bull Terrier, and Rottweiler.

However, the first trial court recognized A's negligence and sentenced him to a fine of 2 million won, stating, "The Animal Protection Act defines dangerous dogs as those breeds and 'other dogs that are likely to attack and cause injury to people.'"

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