On Monday, Youn Bum Lee, A 42-year-old former Hyundai executive, was sentenced to a 9-year prison term for causing the hit-and-run, drunk driving Santa Ana car accident that killed a 23-year-old Fountain Valley motorcyclist on the 55 Freeway on October 19, 2005.
Ryan Dallas Cook was riding his motorcycle in the carpool lane when he was struck by the Hyundai SUV that Lee was driving. Lee was coming back from attending a Hyundai sponsored event at the Seoul Korean BBQ Restaurant in Garden Grove. The impact of the vehicle and motorcycle colliding caused Cook to be thrown from his bike and onto the freeway where he was run over by several other vehicles. He was pronounced dead at the Santa Ana motorcycle crash site.
Meantime, Lee, who investigators say was inebriated and driving without lights, fled the Orange County, California motorcycle accident site. He backed his car into a parking space at Hyundai's Fountain Valley offices in an alleged attempt to hide the vehicle damage.
Within less than 24 hours, a Hyundai employee took Lee to Los Angeles International Airport where he took a flight to South Korea. His wife and child stayed behind in Irvine. After prosecutors filed criminal charges against Lee, he was extradited to Orange County, California last December.
Last month, the 42-year-old former Hyundai executive pleaded guilty to charges of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and fleeing a crime scene.
Cook's family is suing Lee and Hyundai Motor Company of America for Orange County, California wrongful death. They are accusing the company of encouraging a corporate culture that promotes drinking at work events.
The host of the Hyundai event that Lee attended supposedly made a number of toasts. During a conditional exam for the criminal case, one Hyundai staffer testified that it is considered rude if guests don't drink when the host makes a toast. 14 bottles of Soju and numerous drinks were consumed by Hyundai employees who attended the work event.
Cook's family is also suing Hyundai for helping Lee leave the US after the Santa Ana motor vehicle collision.
The wrongful death trial is scheduled to begin in Orange County Superior Court on May 17, 2010.
Former Hyundai exec sentenced to 9 years in cycle death, Press-Telegram, December 8, 2009
Former Hyundai executive gets 9 years in DUI death, OC Register, December 7, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Drunk Driving (DUI/DWI) Overview, Justia
