Patient Fined for Unprovoked Assault on Paramedic Inside Ambulance

A patient who assaulted a paramedic without reason while being transported to the hospital was fined.

According to the legal community on the 10th, Judge Park Min of the Criminal Division 8 at the Seoul Central District Court recently sentenced Mr. A, who was charged with violating the Act on 119 Rescue and Emergency Medical Services, to a fine of 3 million won.

In September of last year, Mr. A, who had injured his head, suddenly struck the paramedic transporting him in the ambulance on the head after saying, "Shall I hit you once?"

Mr. A claimed in court that he had no intention to obstruct the paramedic’s duties and that he was in a state of mental incapacity due to intoxication at the time of the incident, unable to distinguish objects or make decisions.

However, the court did not accept Mr. A’s claim, stating, "As confirmed by the wearable camera footage of the paramedic, Mr. A continuously conversed with the paramedic before precisely striking his head, and immediately after the act, he operated his mobile phone himself."

Furthermore, the court stated, "Even if Mr. A was in a state of diminished mental capacity, considering the necessity of strict punishment for crimes obstructing official duties, it is inappropriate to reduce the sentence on the grounds of intoxication-induced diminished capacity."

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