Riding drunk with children crying, “Mom is scary”

[26.08.08] Sentenced to 12 Years: Drunk Mother Ignores Crying Children, Hits & Kills Groom-to-be at 194km/h

A 30-something woman, referred to as 'A', who drove heavily intoxicated at speeds up to 194 km/h with her two young daughters in the car and killed a motorcycle driver, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison in the first trial. The victim was a 28-year-old only son and groom-to-be who tragically lost his life on his way home from work. The perpetrator sparked public outrage by ignoring her terrified, crying children with verbal abuse, and fleeing the scene without attempting to rescue the victim.

1. The Beginning of the Tragedy: A Horrifying Drunk Drive

The horrific accident occurred around 9:20 PM on January 9 on a road in Hongbuk-eup, Hongseong-gun, Chungnam. A was driving with a severely high blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.211% when she slammed into a motorcycle driver in his 20s who was driving normally on the road. The victim was rushed to the hospital immediately after the accident but ultimately died from traumatic brain hemorrhage and other injuries.

Looking at the core facts, A's driving speed was completely beyond any normal cognitive control. The speed limit on the road where the accident occurred was 60 km/h, but investigations revealed that A's vehicle was traveling at 178 km/h at the time of impact, and dashcam footage confirmed she had reached a top speed of 194 km/h at one point. This deadly speed was more than three times the legal limit.

As a result of this extreme collision, the victim in his 20s suffered severe trauma and was rushed to the emergency room. However, due to fatal internal injuries including a traumatic brain hemorrhage, he was pronounced dead before any further surgical intervention could take place. The tragedy is further compounded by the fact that he was simply on a normal commute heading home.

194 km/h in a 60 km/h Zone! In a state of total intoxication and uncontrollable speeding, A took the precious life of a young man returning home from work.

2. Ignoring Her Children's Pleas and the Callous Hit-and-Run

At the time of the crash, A's 6-year-old and 4-year-old daughters were in the vehicle. Dashcam audio revealed through JTBC's 'Scandal Supervisor' captured the terrifying cries of the 6-year-old daughter begging her mother to "go slowly" as A recklessly ignored traffic signals. However, despite her child's desperate pleas, A did not stop driving and instead used rough language and cursed at her crying children.

The facts surrounding her behavior immediately following the crash are even more shocking. Although A got out of the car, she made absolutely no effort to rescue the fallen victim. Instead, she shouted curses at the victim's girlfriend who was at the scene, blaming them by saying "my child was startled," and then fled the scene.

Ultimately, A faced comprehensive charges including violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (fatal hit-and-run), violation of the Road Traffic Act, and violation of the Child Welfare Act. Continuing to drive at extreme speeds while her children were engulfed in terror was legally recognized as an act of abuse that inflicted severe harm on their psychological development.

Fled the Scene with Curses Instead of Helping! She neglected her children to the point of facing Child Welfare Act violation charges and abandoned the victim to flee.

3. The Court's Verdict: Reduced to 12 Years from 17-Year Demand

Judge Im Hwi-jae of the Hongseong Branch of the Daejeon District Court sentenced A to 12 years in prison last month. She was indicted on charges including fatal hit-and-run under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes, failure to take measures after an accident, violation of the Road Traffic Act, and violation of the Child Welfare Act. The court sternly noted that A severely harmed the mental health and development of her children with her drunk and reckless driving, and emphasized that she committed the crime despite having two prior convictions for traffic-related offenses, including unlicensed driving.

Checking the facts reflected in the sentencing, the prosecution had demanded 17 years in prison during the final trial. However, the court reduced the sentence to 12 years—5 years less than requested—taking into account mitigating factors such as A being covered by comprehensive auto insurance and her husband submitting a petition for leniency. The court firmly rejected A's claims that she "lacked cognitive ability" or "did not flee the scene."

In its ruling, the court explicitly pointed out that A failed to perform any necessary rescue measures even though the victim was still alive immediately following the crash. By highlighting her behavior of shifting the blame onto others at the scene and cursing, the court firmly dismissed the defendant's claim that she lacked the cognitive ability to assess the severity of the situation.

Sentence Reduced Due to Insurance and Husband's Petition! While criticizing her two prior traffic convictions, the court handed down a lighter sentence than demanded by acknowledging some favorable circumstances.

4. The Bereaved Family's Anguish and the Perpetrator's Hypocrisy

The deceased victim was a 28-year-old only son and a groom-to-be preparing to start a family, simply heading home after work. The devastated bereaved family expressed their deep sense of loss and injustice through the media. The family claimed that after the accident, the perpetrator's husband initially seemed to consider financial compensation, but changed his stance to "compensation is difficult" once the case aired on TV. The family dismissed this, stating, "Receiving money is not the essence of this case and means absolutely nothing."

The facts regarding the defendant's attitude during the trial have also sparked controversy. According to the bereaved family, A submitted 11 letters of apology to the court pleading for leniency, yet showed strong displeasure towards the family for reporting the case to the media, displaying hypocritical behavior. Watching this attitude, the family expressed immense frustration, stating it is impossible to accept the court's decision to reduce the sentence based merely on letters of apology that lack genuine remorse.

The bereaved family expressed profound distrust, pointing out that the perpetrator's side abruptly changed their stance on compensation right after the media reports surfaced. Faced with the irreversible loss of a 28-year-old only son who was preparing for marriage, the defendant's hypocritical behavior only deepened the family's grief and fueled their plea for a harsher sentence.

Contradiction: 11 Apologies yet Displeased by Media Reports! The family of the 28-year-old victim is left devastated by the insincere apology letters and the lenient sentencing.

Category / Issue	Key Facts and Details
Accident Overview	Jan 9, 9:20 PM in Hongseong, drunk driving with a BAC of 0.211%.
Speeding Details	Peaked at 194 km/h in a 60 km/h speed limit zone (exceeded by over 3 times).
Child Abuse Context	Ignored pleas of terrified 6yo and 4yo passengers, verbally abused crying children.
Hit and Run	No rescue efforts, cursed at the girlfriend, fled (2 prior traffic convictions).
First Trial Verdict	Sentenced to 12 years, reduced from prosecution's 17 years (insurance, husband's petition considered).

[Key Summary] 5 Points of the Fatal Drunk Driving Incident

• 1. Extreme Intoxication & Speeding: Hit and killed a groom-to-be while driving at 194 km/h with a license-revocation BAC of 0.211%.
• 2. Neglecting & Abusing Children: Pushed through the drive with verbal abuse despite her terrified 6-year-old child begging her to stop (Child Welfare Act violation).
• 3. Callous Hit-and-Run: Abandoned rescue duties immediately after the crash, cursed at the victim's companion, and ran away.
• 4. Leniency Controversy: Despite being a repeat offender, the sentence was lowered to 12 years from the demanded 17 years due to car insurance and her husband's petition.
• 5. Family's Outrage: The family demands severe punishment, criticizing A's hypocritical attitude of submitting 11 apologies while being upset about media exposure.

Related Tags: DrunkDriving, HitAndRun, ChildAbuse, FatalFleeing, 12YearsPrison, ScandalSupervisor, HongseongBranch, GroomToBe, 2026_August_8