The Suncheon branch of the Gwangju District Court on Thursday sentenced a mother to life in prison for the fatal abuse of her 4-month-old son last year. The father was sentenced to four years and six months in prison.
“Every child has the right to be born healthy and to grow up in safety, and parents bear an unlimited responsibility to raise their children safely,” presiding Judge Kim Yong kyu said.
“Everyone knows raising a child is not easy, and that caring for an infant can push parents to their physical and mental limits,” he said. “But a child grows alongside the parents. The weight of parental responsibility is never light.”
The judge described the abuse as exceptionally severe, saying the mother had treated the infant not as an independent human being but as an object on which to vent her anger.
The case shocked the country in October 2025, when the 4-month-old boy was found dead at a home in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province, after being brutally abused by his mother.
Investigators said the mother assaulted the infant and left him in a baby bathtub with running water, where he died. An autopsy later found that the child had suffered 23 bone fractures and a concussion.
The father, who was at a prostitution establishment at the time of the infant’s death, was also indicted on charges of violating the Child Welfare Act.
Authorities found that the mother had assaulted the infant 19 times between Aug. 24 and Oct. 22, 2025.
Forensic analysis of home surveillance footage showed her stepping on the child’s face, holding him by the ankles and throwing him onto a bed.
At one point, the mother was heard saying, “Die, I don’t need a thing like you,” along with other profanity.
The court found that the father had failed to stop the abuse and had blackmailed a witness who testified during the investigation.
Prosecutors had sought life imprisonment for the mother and a 10-year prison term for the father.
Meanwhile, citizens gathered outside the court ahead of the sentencing to mourn the infant’s death and call for severe punishment.
Funeral flowers, balloons and ribbons lined the street outside the courthouse. A billboard at a nearby intersection repeatedly aired reports on the case.
“It was very difficult to watch the footage because it kept making me think of my own child,” said a mother surnamed Jeong, who came from Seoul with her infant. “I hope something like this never happens again, and I believe the perpetrators deserve a life sentence.”
seungku99@heraldcorp.com
