Supreme Court Confirms Not Guilty Verdict for Instructor in 'Scuba Diving Death Accident' on Charges of Negligent Homicide in the Course of Duty

Supreme Court in Seocho-dong, Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] A scuba diving instructor who was tried for causing a fatal accident due to improper safety management during skin scuba club activities was acquitted of the charge of professional negligence resulting in death.

On the 6th, the Supreme Court Division 2 (Presiding Justice Cho Jaeyeon) announced that in the appeal trial of scuba diving instructor Mr. A, who was indicted for professional negligence resulting in death, it upheld the lower court's ruling that recognized only the violation of the Coastal Accident Prevention Act, sentencing him to a fine of 2 million won.

Previously, Mr. A was prosecuted on charges of failing to fulfill his professional duty of care to prevent safety accidents in the sea of Gangwon Province in 2018, which led to the death of skin scuba club member Mr. B. He was also charged for allowing members to engage in coastal experience activities without reporting to the head of the maritime police station.

At the time, Mr. B was investigated to have lost consciousness after a rapid descent while diving in the sea wearing a drysuit (buoyancy control diving suit) for the first time.

The first trial court judged all charges against Mr. A as guilty, stating, "Although the irreversible result of the victim's death occurred, he only showed attempts to reduce responsibility and was not forgiven by the bereaved family." However, considering Mr. B's negligence in attempting a free descent without holding the descent rope, the court sentenced Mr. A to four months in prison with a one-year probation.

On the other hand, the second trial court acquitted Mr. A of the charge of professional negligence resulting in death and imposed a fine of 2 million won. The court at the time pointed out, "Mr. A instructed Mr. B and other members to hold the descent rope and descend before entering the water," and "If Mr. B lost consciousness due to poor drysuit operation, it would have been difficult to maintain a proper posture from the start."

Furthermore, the court stated, "Mr. B was maintaining posture and descending until just before the accident," and "It is difficult to recognize a causal relationship between poor drysuit operation and death." The Supreme Court also agreed with this judgment and dismissed the prosecutor's appeal.

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