Mother Accused of Causing Death of Six-Day-Old Daughter Acquitted Again on Appeal

Allegations Revealed During Nationwide Survey of Unregistered Births

Court: "Cannot Rule Out Possibility of Accidental Death"

The mother, who was put on trial for causing the death of her six-day-old daughter ten years ago, was acquitted in the appeals trial following her initial acquittal by the lower court.

On July 16, the Criminal Division 1 of the Busan High Court, presided over by Chief Judge Kim Joungho, upheld the original ruling acquitting A, a woman in her 40s, of murder charges and dismissed the prosecutor's appeal.

Flag in front of Busan District Court and Busan High Court. Photo by Yonhap News

A was indicted on charges of causing the death of her six-day-old daughter by leaving the baby unattended on a bed and failing to provide formula in a timely manner at her residence in Gijang-gun, Busan, on February 10, 2015. She married her husband in 2011 and gave birth to her first daughter. In November 2014, shortly before giving birth to her second daughter, A discovered that her husband had a large amount of debt, which led to their divorce. Prosecutors argued that A killed her second daughter due to anxiety caused by financial difficulties, the burden of raising the victim, and stress, and subsequently indicted her.

The crime was uncovered during a nationwide survey of so-called "ghost children"—children with birth records but without official birth registration. In July 2023, the government conducted a full investigation into children who had birth records but were not officially registered. A testified that, after her daughter's death, she illicitly buried the infant's body in a wooded area in Gijang-gun, Busan; however, the body was never found.

The court of first instance noted there were suspicious circumstances, such as A lying to those around her by saying she had given the child up for adoption after the incident. The court found, based on A's statements, that the baby likely died, but determined there was insufficient evidence to clarify the exact circumstance of death, meaning the murder charge was not proven beyond a reasonable doubt. The court stated, "It is difficult to completely rule out the possibility of sudden infant death or accidental death unrelated to A's intent or negligence," and concluded, "It is also not possible to be certain that A had a motive to kill." The court acquitted A, also noting that while there may be grounds for other offenses, such as involuntary manslaughter, child abuse resulting in death, or abandonment resulting in death, there was also insufficient proof for these charges.

The appeals court also stated, "A review of the case records against the lower court's judgment leads us to accept the original acquittal as justified," and ruled, "There does not appear to be any illegality, so the prosecutor's appeal is without merit."

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