A Seoul court ruled Sunday that the state could not be held accountable for the 2007 death of a toddler who died after being abused at a day care center.

The 2-year-old boy died after being abused by workers at the center in Ulsan. The child’s father, identified by his surname Lee, recently filed a lawsuit against the Welfare Ministry for failing to properly supervise the day care center in question.

“Childcare law at the time stated that inspections should be made every five years. While the government officials did not probe the facility during the time Lee left his son at the said facility, it does not mean they failed to fulfill their monitoring duties,” the Seoul Central Disctrict Court said in its ruling.

Lee, who was a single father at the time, started using a day care center near his home for his son’s care in February of 2007.

But the couple who ran the place were accused of beating the child, and failed to take him to a hospital, even after he started showing symptoms of illness such as vomiting.

Injuries the boy sustained at the day care center included a rupture of the small intestine, which eventually led to peritonitis and ultimately to his death in May of that year.

The workers were tried for voluntary manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide and violating child care law. But they denied ever beating the child and claimed that his injuries were caused by falling off a piano stool.

While the boy’s older brother testified that he saw ― on several occasions ― the accused using violence against the deceased, the court said his testimony may have been distorted due to anxiety and acute stress disorder caused by his brother’s death.

The court found that there was no damning evidence of voluntary manslaughter and sentenced the couple to suspended prison terms, which were confirmed by the Supreme Court.

In addition to suing the state, Lee had claimed prosecutors should have charged the guilty for murder instead of manslaughter. The court, however, rejected this too, saying there was no reason to believe that the investigators did not effectively carry out their duties.

The incident came back under the spotlight amid the nationwide uproar sparked by a child abuse case in Incheon, where a 4-year-old was brutally beaten by a child care worker. Last month, an internet petition to reopen the case was signed by over 110,000 people.

But a reinvestigation is highly unlikely since the case was properly closed, according to police.

By Yoon Min-sik (minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)