Taxi driver sentenced over expressway death

By Bahk Eun-ji

A taxi driver who dropped off a drunken passenger on an expressway - who was later hit and killed - has received a two-year jail term, suspended for three years.

The driver, identified as “A,” pleaded guilty to a charge of negligence causing death.

According to the Daegu High Court, “A” picked up the drunken passenger, identified as “B,” at 2:20 a.m. on July 20, 2014, at Andong, North Gyeongsang Province.

“B” paid 90,000 won ($79) to “A” to drive him to Daegu, but “B” spoke incoherently about his destination.

When “A” could not find the destination on his GPS navigation device, “A” dropped ”B” off on an expressway near the South Daegu toll gate at 3:40 a.m.

“B” wandered around for 30 minutes before two cars hit him. He died instantly from brain damage.

The court handed down a heavy sentence because “A” forgot his duty as a driver to take his passenger safely to the destination. But “B” also shared responsibility because he left the cab willingly, the court said.