A mother-in-law Jang, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in the first trial for the abusive death of 16-month-old adopted child Jeong-in, was commuted to a long term imprisonment at the appeals court.
The 7th Criminal Division of the Seoul High Court (Judge Seongsu-je Kang Kyung-pyo and Bae Jeong-hyeon) sentenced Jang, who was charged with murder, to 35 years in prison today (26th), breaking the first trial that sentenced him to life imprisonment.
Ahn, who was also accused of violating the Child Welfare Act (child abuse), was sentenced to 5 years in prison, the same as the first trial.
Similar to the first trial, the court admitted that Jang was guilty of murder, but explained, "It is difficult to see that there are objective facts that justify the sentence of life imprisonment, which permanently separates the accused from society."
Jang was indicted on charges of habitually assaulting and abusing her daughter, Jeong-in, whom she adopted between June and October of last year, and causing her to die by inflicting a strong shock on her abdomen on October 13.
Prosecutors found that Jang had intentional or unwritten intent to kill Jung In, and applied the murder charge as a circumstantial indictment (the main crime) and child abuse as a preliminary indictment, and handed it over to trial.
The intention is to punish Jang for murder if intentionality is acknowledged, but to punish him as a child abuse and homicide if not acknowledged.
Although Jang admitted that he had abused the child, he did not intend to kill Jung In, and claimed that the traces of shock left on Jung In's abdomen were due to cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). .
The prosecution, who had asked for the death penalty for Jang in the first trial, also requested the court to sentence the death penalty, saying, "This case is a crime against a 16-month-old child who is difficult to defend on its own, and the crime is high and anti-social."
(Photo = Yonhap News)