Drug Use Followed by Sexual Intercourse... Acquitted Despite Assault and Neglect Leading to Death, Why?

A man in his 50s who was tried on charges of assaulting and abandoning a woman in a de facto marital relationship after using drugs and having sexual intercourse, resulting in her death, was acquitted. The court ruled the man not guilty of murder, stating that the intent to kill was not proven, and found him guilty only of driving under the influence of drugs, sentencing him to imprisonment.

The Changwon District Court Criminal Division 4 (Presiding Judge Jang Yujin) announced on the 29th that it sentenced Mr. A (56), who was indicted on charges of murder and violation of the Narcotics Control Act, to one year in prison and ordered a fine of 400,000 won.

The request for an electronic location tracking device attachment order was not accepted.

Mr. A, in October last year, at a farm shed in Changwon, Gyeongnam, assaulted Ms. B (in her 40s), his de facto partner of three years, after using drugs and having sexual intercourse. When Ms. B began to show incoherent speech and hallucinations, Mr. A struck her face and kicked her abdomen.

He is also charged with driving 28.8 km while under the influence of drugs after abandoning Ms. B.

The prosecution charged him with murder, arguing that Mr. A anticipated that the victim could be critically ill or die from acute methamphetamine poisoning but failed to contact a hospital or provide aid, leading to her death.

However, the court found the murder charge unproven and acquitted him.

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The court stated, “It is difficult to prove that he knew the victim was in a dangerous situation and failed to provide aid, and there is no credible evidence to support this. The autopsy results showed that acute methamphetamine poisoning was the cause of death, making it hard to conclude that death was due to assault.”

The court also considered Mr. A’s testimony that Ms. B had previously exhibited more severe hallucinations and would often be asleep when he returned after briefly leaving, along with the fact that Ms. B was a chronic drug user and that Mr. A stayed nearby while leaving her alone in the farm shed for about two hours, concluding there was no intent to kill.

It was determined that Mr. A was not aware that Ms. B needed help or protection at the time of the incident.

However, the court found him guilty of driving under the influence of drugs, stating, “He drove a long distance with his son in the car, creating a significant risk, which is highly blameworthy,” explaining the sentencing rationale.

The prosecution is reportedly planning to appeal.

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