Son Furious Over Assault on 94-Year-Old Mother... Beats 100-Year-Old Father to Death

First Trial and Appeal Both Result in 3-Year Prison Sentence
"Only Pushed While Trying to Stop Assault," Claimed but Found Guilty

A man in his 50s who fatally beat his 100-year-old father, who was assaulting his mother in her 90s, was sentenced to prison again in the appellate court following the first trial.

According to a report by Yonhap News on the 29th, the Criminal Division 1 of the Chuncheon Branch of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judge Kim Hyeong-jin) dismissed the appeal filed by Mr. A (58), who was charged with assault causing death of a family member, and sentenced him to three years in prison, the same as the original sentence.

On the early morning of March 16, 2021, Mr. A witnessed his father, Mr. B (100), assaulting his mother, Mrs. C (94), by choking her neck at their home. In a moment of anger, Mr. A struck Mr. B’s face multiple times, causing skull fractures and brain hemorrhage, which led to his death. He was prosecuted on these charges.

At the trial, Mr. A claimed, "I only pushed my father’s (Mr. B’s) face 1 to 2 times with my elbow while trying to stop the assault, and my father slipped and hit his head on the edge of the bed, which caused his death."

The Sokcho Branch of the Chuncheon District Court, which handled the first trial, rejected Mr. A’s claim based on the observation of extensive bruising around Mr. B’s eyes, head, and face, as well as widespread bleeding inside the head. Furthermore, the autopsy report and the testimony of the expert who prepared the report identified the cause of death as "head injury caused by external impact," which was also used as grounds for a guilty verdict.

The court concluded that there was no evidence of skin lacerations severe enough to break bones from hitting the edge of the bed, and that Mrs. C, who suffers from dementia and has limited mobility, was highly unlikely to have struck Mr. B’s head. Based on these findings, the first trial sentenced Mr. A to prison and ordered his detention in court.

Dissatisfied with the verdict, Mr. A appealed. He maintained the same argument in the appellate court, but the appellate court also upheld the original judgment. The appellate court explained the reason for dismissing the appeal, stating, "Considering that the incident appears to have occurred somewhat impulsively and that the defendant lived with and cared for his parents for a considerable period, the original court’s sentencing decision does not appear to have exceeded the reasonable limits of discretion."

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