The appellate court also rules "State must compensate for death during anti-Park Geun-hye impeachment rally"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The appellate court also recognized the state's liability for compensation regarding a participant who died after attending an anti-impeachment rally near the Constitutional Court on the day former President Park Geun-hye was impeached.

According to the legal community on the 16th, the Seoul Central District Court Civil Appeals Division 8-2 (Presiding Judges Lee Soon-hyung, Kim Jung-min, Kim Byung-ryong) ruled partially in favor of the plaintiff in the appeal lawsuit filed by the son of Mr. Kim, who died at the rally, ordering the state to compensate the plaintiff approximately 31 million KRW.

The court stated, "The first trial omitted judgment on Mr. Kim's preliminary claim," and reviewed the case again, but the compensation amount remained similar.

Considering that Mr. Kim arrived at the accident scene by using a gap in the police barricade caused by the clash and that he himself did not exercise sufficient caution, the court limited the state's compensation liability to 20%.

Mr. Kim participated in the anti-impeachment rally led by the "National General Rally Movement Headquarters for the Rejection of the President's Impeachment (Tankiguk)" in front of Anguk Station in Seoul on March 10, 2017, the day the Constitutional Court announced the impeachment trial verdict of former President Park.

When the Constitutional Court decided to remove former President Park from office, the rally took a violent turn. An agitated participant hijacked a police bus and repeatedly rammed police barricades. Due to the impact, a noise control vehicle parked beside the police bus shook, causing a large speaker on the vehicle's roof to fall onto Mr. Kim's head and chest. Mr. Kim was transported to the hospital but died.

Mr. Kim's son filed a lawsuit against the state seeking damages of approximately 120 million KRW.

The first trial recognized the state's liability for compensation, stating, "Police officers managing the rally and demonstration have the duty to properly control the rally to prevent harm to the lives or bodies of citizens, but they allowed a participant to hijack a police bus and ram the barricades."