Student Crushed to Death by Rock During Rock Climbing Training... Instructor Found 'Not Guilty'

Court: "Not Negligence in Duty"... Acquittal Upheld in Appeal Trial

An instructor at a mountaineering school, who was prosecuted after a student died during rock climbing training at an abandoned quarry, was acquitted in the appellate court following the first trial.

According to the legal community on the 9th, on March 27, 2021, a two-person rock climbing practical training session was held for mountaineering school students at an artificial rock wall in an abandoned quarry located in Yangju-si, Gyeonggi Province. At that time, Mr. A, the lead instructor of the mountaineering school, was in charge of the on-site training. On the same afternoon, student B inserted a climbing protection device (climbing cam) between rocks to support his body and was stepping on a rope ladder installed below his feet when the rock into which the protection device was inserted detached from the rock wall. As a result, B fell about 2 meters down and was crushed by the falling rock, ultimately leading to his death.

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Regarding this accident, the investigative authorities charged Mr. A with professional negligence, stating that the training site was a dangerous area marked with warning signs prohibiting public access, and that the training was carried out despite the possibility of falling rocks or accidents during the spring thaw period and rainy weather. However, the court's judgment differed.

The court explained the claim that the artificial rock wall where the accident occurred was a dangerous place by stating, "Although warning signs and barbed wire are installed, this is a state-owned land managed by the Ministry of National Defense and also used as a military training ground, so the prohibition is for access control, not because the location itself is inherently dangerous." Furthermore, the court noted that while March generally falls within the spring thaw period, it is not possible to specify the exact days when the risk of falling rocks is high. Additionally,

the court judged that although it rained slightly at the time of the accident, it was difficult to find a correlation between the rain and the falling rocks.

Although Mr. A was the lead instructor of the mountaineering school, the training was conducted as part of inter-agency exchange, and Mr. A only took charge of the training upon request; he did not actively recruit the students or set the dates, which was also a reason for the acquittal.

The prosecution appealed on grounds of factual error and misinterpretation of the law, but the appellate court ruled Mr. A not guilty, consistent with the first trial.

The 1st Criminal Division of the Uijeongbu District Court (Presiding Judge Shim Jun-bo) explained the reason for the acquittal, stating, "Considering the detailed circumstances judged in the original trial, the acquittal is reasonable, and there appears to be no factual error as claimed by the prosecution."

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