A mother who repeatedly abused her 4-month-old son, Haeden (pseudonym), leading to his death, has had her life sentence reduced to 35 years in an appeals court.
The Gwangju High Court's Criminal Division 2, presided over by Judge Hwang Jin-hee, overturned the original sentence on August 25, sentencing the woman, in her 30s, to 35 years in prison for child abuse murder under the Special Act on the Punishment of Child Abuse Crimes. Her husband, who was also charged for neglecting the abuse, received a sentence of 4 years and 6 months, the same as in the first trial.
The appeals court acknowledged the severity and antisocial nature of the woman's actions but stated, "It is difficult to conclude that the crime was premeditated, and she has shown remorse, albeit belatedly," as a reason for the reduced sentence.
The mother was charged with abusing her son and leaving him in a running bathtub, resulting in multiple fractures and bleeding, which led to his death on October 22, 2025. Investigations revealed that the abuse occurred 19 times from August 24 of the same year. The first trial, held in April, sentenced her to life imprisonment, noting that the child died just 133 days after birth and had suffered abuse for nearly 60 days of his short life.
This case was initially referred to the police for child abuse leading to death but was later changed to child abuse murder after a supplementary investigation by the prosecution. Authorities secured over 4,800 home surveillance recordings from the family's residence, analyzing both video and audio evidence. They concluded that the mother had committed intentional violence and neglect, leading to her arrest and indictment for child abuse murder in December 2025.
Similar to the previous 'Jeongin case,' where a 16-month-old girl was abused to death by her adoptive mother, the life sentence was also reduced to 35 years in the appeals court. In that case, the adoptive mother was sentenced to life imprisonment in the first trial but had her sentence reduced in the appeals court, which found insufficient evidence of premeditated planning and deemed that there were not enough objective circumstances to justify a permanent separation from society. The 35-year sentence was confirmed by the Supreme Court in April 2022.
However, the charges in the two cases differ. The adoptive mother in the Jeongin case was charged with murder under the Criminal Act. The child abuse murder charge, established in March 2021 following the Jeongin case, stipulates penalties of death, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for a minimum of seven years. According to the Supreme Court's sentencing guidelines, the recommended sentence for child abuse murder is 17 to 22 years, with aggravated circumstances leading to sentences of 20 years or more or life imprisonment.
Meanwhile, the 'Free Haeden' civic group, which has called for severe punishment since the first trial, expressed shock at the reduced sentence, stating, "There has been no change compared to the 35-year sentence in the Jeongin case."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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