A Man in His 50s Who Stabbed Husband to Death After He Neglected Living Expenses Due to Gambling and Alcohol Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison

Marital quarrel. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Eun-young] A woman in her 50s who stabbed her husband to death with a weapon while intoxicated after he habitually drank and gambled without providing living expenses was sentenced to 10 years in prison. The defendant's side has appealed the verdict, and the first hearing of the appeal trial will be held on the 24th.

On August 6 of last year, A (56, female), who was raising a middle school son and an elementary school daughter, was fired from the restaurant where she worked to make a living.

Feeling despair over her situation, A drank alone at a bar the next day and sent text messages to her husband B saying, "I am so sad I want to die," "You were a trash mentally ill person," and "I want to die."

A, who had been divorced once before, remarried B, but from the beginning of their marriage, B was addicted to gambling and drinking, never properly providing living expenses, which led to frequent fights between the two.

To make matters worse, in June of the same year, B strangled their son because the son would not listen and only asked for money. When the son reported this to the police, B left the house and lived alone in a multi-family housing unit.

A asked B, who had left the house, to send living expenses, but B avoided contact and did not send any money.

In addition to conflicts with her husband, A, who was also fired from the restaurant where she worked, drank during the day on the day of the incident, feeling despair, and after sending a message saying "I will kill you," headed to the house where B was.

There, A found B drinking with a friend. Angry, A shouted, "Is this the time to be drinking? Bring the divorce papers." B replied, "I know, so just leave."

Enraged, A threw chopsticks and plates from the table and suddenly raised kitchen scissors above B's head. Startled, B grabbed A's wrist, and the two struggled, pushing and pulling each other.

When B lost his grip on A's wrist, A stabbed B once in the left chest. A fled without taking any action, and B, who suffered a fatal wound to the heart, was taken to the hospital but died.

Eventually, A stood trial in September last year on charges of murder. The defense argued in court that there was no intent to kill, claiming it was a case of injury resulting in death during the process of threatening her husband with scissors, but the court judged that there was implied intent to kill.

A claimed to be intoxicated, having drunk about three times her usual amount, and argued diminished mental capacity. However, the court did not accept this claim either.

The Criminal Division 2 of Chuncheon District Court (Presiding Judge Jin Won-du) stated, "Considering the shape of the weapon, the direction and force applied, the location and severity of the victim's wounds, and the defendant's psychological state at the time of the crime, it was sufficiently foreseeable that the victim could die from the crime," and added, "The children born between the victim and the defendant lost their biological father due to the defendant's crime."

The court also pointed out, "The defendant fled the scene without taking any emergency measures for the victim after the crime."

At the same time, the court acknowledged, "The victim was addicted to gambling and drinking, did not provide living expenses, and even committed violence against the children," and said, "Considering the difficulties the defendant experienced in this married life, there are some circumstances that can be taken into account regarding the motive of the crime." The court sentenced A to 10 years in prison.

Both A's side and the prosecution have appealed the verdict.

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