Singer Kim Ho-joong, who got indicted while being held in custody over charges of a “hit-and-run driving under the influence of alcohol,” has been handed the same sentence—two years and six months in prison—even after his appeal.
On the 25th, the Seoul Central District Court stuck with the original ruling in Kim Ho-joong’s appeal trial, where he was facing charges of dangerous driving that caused injury.
The court pointed out that the nature of Kim Ho-joong’s accident and the way he fled the scene were pretty bad, and things didn’t look any better when considering what happened afterward.
Still, the court explained why it kept the same sentence, saying that since Kim Ho-joong had reached a settlement with the victim and didn’t have a criminal record before this, the original sentence seemed fair and within reason.
Also, the court didn’t buy Kim Ho-joong’s claim that he hadn’t drunk enough alcohol to affect his ability to drive. They said, “The amount of alcohol Kim consumed on the day of the incident appeared to be substantial, and it could not be seen as a simple accident caused by manipulating a mobile phone.”
Just to recap, Kim Ho-joong was previously charged for running away after getting into a drunk driving accident in Apgujeong-dong, Gangnam, Seoul, back in May last year. He even tried to pin the driving on someone else.
Source (1)
