Man arrested for slapping noisy child in cinema

A man in Seattle has been charged with assaulting a 10-year-old boy… after the child allegedly refused to stop talking and throwing popcorn in the cinema.

21-year-old Yong Hyun Kim is accused of knocking the boy’s tooth out.  Kim said the youngster and his friends were throwing popcorn and talking loudly during the movie. Some popcorn landed on Kim and his girlfriend, which made him confront the group.

According to the boy, Kim said something like: “You know what, I paid a lot of money to see this movie”, then punched him in the face.

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[Related content: Read our 'Titanic 3D' review]

Police were called and when officers arrived on they found the boy waiting in the lobby of the cinema with his mother and several of her friends. He was bleeding from the nose and mouth.

Kim admits hitting the boy but said he thought he was an adult. According to court documents he was ashamed and told police: “I got so mad that it just happened.”

Kim has been charged with second-degree assault, and he could face months in jail.

The unsavoury incident happened during a screening of ‘Titanic 3D’, so perhaps it’s no surprise the kids were restless.