Another schoolteacher charged with murder of toddler son
The Gimcheon branch of the Daegu District Court / Newsis
A middle school teacher has been charged with murdering her 3-year-old son, months after she attempted to kill her father, according to sources Wednesday, following a separate shocking murder case involving another teacher this week.
The 30-something teacher based in North Gyeongsang Province, whose identity was withheld, is charged with the murder of her son and the attempted murder of her father. The trial is set to begin in March at the Gimcheon branch of the Daegu District Court, according to police sources and education authorities.
The suspect was found to have initially faced police investigation after a failed attempt to kill her father last April. Despite the crime, she was not dismissed from her job and instead applied for medical leave two months later.
Local education officials only initiated disciplinary action in October, after she was formally indicted for attempted murder.
While awaiting disciplinary action, the teacher was found to have murdered her own 3-year-old son on Dec. 24. The killing took place at the home.
She later attempted to take her own life, but survived and was later arrested.
According to investigators, the teacher had been struggling with mental health problems as she faced both a criminal trial and disciplinary proceedings.
The teacher stayed on the school payroll for eight months after her first crime and was relieved from her job two days after the murder of her son. The belated process raised concerns about how education authorities handle serious criminal cases involving teachers.
Local education officials defended their response, stating that disciplinary action is typically delayed until after an indictment to avoid potential legal challenges from the accused.
Experts, however, argue that stronger policies are needed to remove teachers facing charges for violent crimes from the school system as soon as possible.
The news follows a case involving another female teacher in her 40s, who stabbed a 7-year-old student to death at an elementary school in the central city of Daejeon on Tuesday. The girl was later pronounced dead at a hospital due to excessive bleeding.
Police have said the suspect in the Daejeon case, surnamed Myeong, was found to have received treatment for depression since 2018. (Yonhap)