Jury: Man was sane when he stabbed girlfriend

BURBANK — A jury on Thursday determined that a 48-year-old Glendale man was sane when he fatally stabbed his girlfriend multiple times on her kitchen floor more than two years ago.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Michael Carter requested that each juror be polled inside the Burbank courthouse on their decision, and all agreed that Soo Duk Kim was sane when he killed 52-year-old Susan Kim.

Soo Duk Kim, who wore a suit in court, remained motionless as the ruling was read. Susan Kim's daughter, Jane Moon, was emotional during the hearing and was not immediately available for comment outside the courtroom.

"I think it was a fair outcome," Los Angeles County Deputy Dist. Atty. Carolina Lugo said. "I am hoping Ms. [Jane] Moon gets some closure."

Family members of Soo Duk Kim declined to comment on the ruling. Calls made to his attorney, James Bisnow, were not returned.

But in court, Bisnow told Carter that he may be filing a motion for a new trial.

Susan Kim was found dead from multiple wounds to her upper torso in her Raymond Avenue home in 2007. Immediately after her death, Soo Duk Kim fled and hid in a Koreatown motel, where police arrested him.

During the trial, Soo Duk Kim's attorney, James Bisnow, told jurors that his client had a hallucination, which was the result of being a "schizoaffective disorder bipolar-type," before killing Susan Kim.

The same jury on Monday found him guilty of second-degree murder.

The second-degree murder verdict, Lugo said, may have been the result of jurors needing more corroborating testimony.

Soo Duk Kim's niece, who reportedly heard him say "You die, I die" to Susan Kim, may have had an impact on the verdict, Lugo added.

Soo Duk Kim is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 28. He will be held without bail in a county jail, officials said.

He faces a maximum sentence of 16 years to life in prison, Lugo said.