Taxi Driver in '5-Lane Road Electric Scooter Collision' Receives 100 Million Won Settlement and Suspended Imprisonment

Court: "No speed reduction on rainy nights"… Taxi driver found guilty
"Victim riding kickboard on car-only road also bears significant fault"

The photo is unrelated to the article content. / Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] A taxi driver who caused serious injuries to a driver by colliding with an electric scooter on a five-lane one-way road during a rainy dawn was sentenced to a suspended prison term by the court.

According to the legal community on the 16th, Judge Min Suyeon of the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 26 recently sentenced taxi driver A (60, male), who was indicted for violating the Special Act on the Treatment of Traffic Accidents (injury), to six months in prison with a two-year suspension. A prison sentence involves confinement in a correctional facility but, unlike imprisonment, does not require forced labor. He was also ordered to attend 40 hours of safe driving lectures.

Prosecution: "Road with a maximum speed of 80 km/h... Should have reduced speed to 80% due to wet conditions from rain"

Earlier, A was brought to trial for hitting B (30, female), who was riding an electric scooter in the 4th lane of a five-lane one-way motor vehicle-only road in Seocho-gu, Seoul, around 2 a.m. on June 14, 2020, causing serious injuries.

The road, where the maximum speed limit is 80 km/h, was wet due to rain at the time. B suffered extensive brain nerve damage, cerebral hemorrhage, cervical (neck) dislocation, fractures in the shin and calf, and other injuries so severe that the treatment period could not be calculated.

In court, A’s side argued, "The occurrence of this traffic accident is not causally related to the defendant’s negligence," and "There was no expectation for the defendant to act lawfully in that situation."

On the other hand, the prosecution pointed out A’s driving speed. Article 19, Paragraph 2, Subparagraph 1 of the current Road Traffic Act Enforcement Rules stipulates that "when the road surface is wet due to rain, the speed must be reduced to 80% of the maximum speed," but A was driving at about 75 km/h.

Court: "A failed to fulfill duty of care and is guilty... Considering significant negligence of the scooter driver as well"

The court ruled that "the traffic accident occurred due to the defendant’s negligence" and found A guilty. Judge Min stated, "Although it was nighttime and raining at the time of the accident, the black box footage clearly shows the victim wearing a white top riding the electric scooter," and added, "The defendant had a duty of care to reduce speed and carefully observe the surroundings to prevent the accident since the road surface was wet, but did not reduce the vehicle’s speed at all until the moment of collision."

However, the judge also noted, "The insurance company that the defendant subscribed to paid 100 million won as a criminal settlement, and the victim’s side does not want the defendant to be punished," and "The victim, who was driving an electric scooter on a motor vehicle-only road at night in the rain, also bears considerable negligence in causing or exacerbating the traffic accident."

Since neither A nor the prosecution appealed, this ruling has been finalized as is.

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