2005 California Fatal Hit and Run DUI Offender Pleads Guilty
42-year-old Youn Lee will be sentenced on December 7, 2009 for California Vehicle Code 191.5a gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. The sentence is based on a fatal hit and run DUI that Lee was involved in more than 4 years ago. He plead guilty to the charge on Tuesday.
Lee reportedly crashed his SUV into the center median of the 55 freeway in Santa Ana on October 18, 2005. Lee’s headlights were not on when 23-year-old Ryan Cook rear-ended him on his motorcycle. Cook was then thrown off his motorcycle where he was run over by several other vehicles. Lee left the scene before the police arrived.
The next morning, Lee, who was an executive at Hyundai, met with general counsel at Hyundai Motor America. After the meeting, he was driven to LAX by a colleague and supervisor where he flew to South Korea, leaving his wife and young child behind.
The Orange County District Attorney’s office filed charges against Lee in April 2007. In September 2008, the D.A. requested Lee be surrendered back to California for trial and/or punishment...a formal legal process known as extradition. In December 2008, Lee was arrested and returned to Orange County in January 2009.
Lee’s expected DUI sentence will be nine years in the California State Prison.
Hyundai persuaded one of Lee’s former coworkers, who had also moved to South Korea, to cooperate with prosecutors to establish that Lee was, in fact, DUI. Without that help, it is unlikely that the Orange County D.A. would have prevailed in this case.
It’s also unlikely that Lee’s sentence would be so high if he hadn’t left the country…this is never the answer. If ever you are involved in…or think you may be involved in…any type of criminal activity, it is always best to seek guidance from a qualified California criminal defense lawyer. California law provides that even if you do not ultimately hire that attorney, you may invoke the attorney / client privilege so that your entire consultation will remain confidential.
