"Cries at Night" Leading to Death by Abuse of One-Year-Old...Prosecutors Seek 30-Year Sentence for Mother and Accomplice

"Abuse Due to Reasons Such as Not Sleeping at Night"

A biological mother and her accomplices were indicted on charges of repeatedly assaulting a one-year-old infant, causing the child's death, claiming they would "break the child's spirit." The prosecution demanded 30 years of imprisonment for them.

On the 29th, the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office, under the supervision of the Criminal Division 11 of the Daejeon District Court (Chief Judge Choi Seok-jin), held a sentencing hearing for A (29, female), acquaintance B (30, male), and C (27, female) on charges of child abuse resulting in death. The prosecution requested 30 years of imprisonment for each defendant. Additionally, they sought a 10-year employment ban in child and youth-related institutions for each. The prosecution explained, "A assaulted her one-year-old son indiscriminately with a shoehorn along with B and others because he woke up at dawn, leading to his death," adding, "The suffering of the victim child is beyond words." The sentencing hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. on the 21st of next month.

A's side admitted all charges and expressed remorse but requested consideration, stating, "She experienced unwanted pregnancy and childbirth at a young age, faced difficulties, and had no one around to help, causing parenting stress." B's lawyer also appealed for leniency, saying, "Due to accumulated stress from sleepless nights, he lost self-control and committed the crime. There was no motive to kill, and he initially moved in to help A, so please consider this." C also expressed remorse.

Unmarried mother A had been living with her one-year-old son D and B at B's house since late August last year to escape domestic violence from her cohabiting partner. After witnessing A disciplining D, B and C said, "You shouldn't do it like that," and conspired to hit the child together, claiming they would "break his spirit." On September 25 last year, while returning from a trip with them, A pulled D's sideburns because he was napping in the car, causing bruising around his eye from hitting his face. They also hit his arm for not eating. B repeatedly struck D's soles and head inside his car. They abused D together for a month.

The reasons for their abuse were trivial. They hit him for not sleeping at night or fussing, for napping too long, or for opening the car window. They did not discriminate in their choice of abuse tools. They reportedly used a tablet PC, metal tongs, a cleaning brush, and a cellphone charger. They even brought a wooden shoehorn from a hotel they visited and conspired to hit D's thighs intensively to avoid others noticing.

On October 4 last year, B witnessed A repeatedly hitting D's face because he woke up and fussed at dawn and joined in. They assaulted D together so severely that his diaper burst and the shoehorn broke. Despite D showing abnormal symptoms such as irregular breathing and dilated pupils around 2 p.m. that day, they neglected him for over an hour. They eventually took D to the hospital where he received cardiopulmonary resuscitation but ultimately died. The cause of death was hypovolemic shock due to trauma. Medical staff found severe bruises on the child's face and body, suspected abuse, and reported it to the police.

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