Seoul Court Convicts in First Late-Term Abortion Murder Case

A Seoul court convicted a woman in her 20s and two doctors of murdering her newborn infant on Wednesday, marking the first time such charges have been applied to a late-term pregnancy termination case in South Korea. The woman, identified only by her surname Kwon, received a three-year prison sentence suspended for five years, along with 200 hours of community service. The hospital director, surnamed Yoon, was sentenced to six years in prison, a fine of 1.5 million won (about $1,000), and ordered to forfeit 1.15 billion won (about $780,000). The operating surgeon, surnamed Shim, drew a four-year prison term. Two brokers involved in arranging the procedure were each given one year and 10 months in prison, suspended for two years.

Prosecutors detailed that in June 2024, Kwon, then 26, sought to end her pregnancy at 36 weeks gestation due to financial instability and concerns over potential birth defects from her alcohol and tobacco use during pregnancy. She had only realized she was pregnant at seven months, according to her court testimony. Introduced to the hospital through brokers, Kwon underwent a cesarean section that delivered a live infant capable of surviving outside the...