Japanese Tourist Fatally Hit by Car on Sidewalk in Kaohsiung, Driver Sentenced to 1 Year 8 Months on Appeal

(Central News Agency Reporter Hong Xueguang Kaohsiung, 17th) A 70-year-old Mr. Zhang in Kaohsiung, while driving through the Zhonghua Wufu Circle, lost his focus and veered into the sidewalk, hitting and killing a Japanese female tourist who was visiting Taiwan. The Kaohsiung District Court initially sentenced him to 1 year and 8 months for negligent homicide. The Kaohsiung High Branch Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the original verdict.

The first-instance judgment of the Kaohsiung District Court stated that Mr. Zhang was driving his private small truck along Zhonghua 4th Road in Qianjin District, Kaohsiung City, from south to north around 4 PM on March 15, 2025. After passing the pedestrian crossing at the Zhonghua Wufu Circle, Mr. Zhang momentarily lost his focus and veered to the right, accelerating the vehicle's speed from 30 km/h to 58 km/h within 8 seconds, exceeding the road's speed limit of 50 km/h.

Without braking or slowing down, Mr. Zhang drove directly onto the sidewalk northeast of the circle, immediately striking a 61-year-old Japanese female tourist who was walking along the sidewalk. Her accompanying son luckily evaded the collision unharmed. The female tourist, after being rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment, eventually succumbed to her injuries, including multiple organ failure, septic shock, and severe fractures across her body, and was pronounced dead on the morning of April 1, 2025.

During the trial at the Kaohsiung District Court, the judge considered that Mr. Zhang, under good road conditions during the day, had momentarily lost focus, causing his vehicle to deviate and speed onto the sidewalk, resulting in the victim's death away from home and causing great grief to her family. Although Mr. Zhang confessed to the crime after the incident, both parties still required time to calculate the details of compensation and consolation money, and a settlement had not been reached.

Furthermore, the judge took into account that police officers were on duty and witnessed the incident at the time of the accident, thus not meeting the criteria for voluntary surrender. He was convicted of negligent homicide and sentenced to 1 year and 8 months of fixed-term imprisonment.

The case was appealed to the second instance. The Taiwan High Court Kaohsiung Branch Court found no impropriety in the original court's findings and application of law, dismissed the appeal, and upheld the original sentence. The case can still be appealed. (Editor: Xie Yazhu) 1150417

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