Will a Mother Who Forced Her Son Out Naked Be Punished for Child Abuse?

Son Told to Get Naked and Go Out
Reported Missing When He Really Didn't Come Home
Found 11 Hours After Incident

Constitutional Court Defines 'Emotional Abuse'
Intentional Abuse Punishable
Accidental Cases Judged by Habituality

Child abuse graphic. Not related to the content of this article.

[Asia Economy reporters Seongpil Cho and Byeongdon Yoo] Around 3 a.m. on the 20th, a couple rushed into the Maetan Police Substation of Suwon Southern Police Station and reported, "Our son is missing." The police officers calmed the couple and took the missing person report. The mother, Ms. A, said, "Around 9 p.m. last night, my son often lied, so I told him to take off his clothes and 'go out,' but he actually went out naked and has not returned." The son, Mr. B, is 11 years old.

On the day the report was filed, it was drizzling rain in the early morning. The temperature dropped sharply by more than 10℃ compared to the previous day. The perceived temperature was below freezing. The police mobilized strike teams from three police substations to conduct a search. Mr. B had left his cellphone behind, making it difficult to track his location. They checked nearby security closed-circuit (CCTV) cameras to trace Mr. B's movements.

Mr. B was found around 8 a.m., about five hours after the police began the search. He was curled up in a park about 100 meters from home. At the time of discovery, Mr. B was wearing a coat. According to the police, Mr. B took the coat from a nearby used clothes collection bin immediately after leaving home. There were no signs of health abnormalities. Mr. B was immediately handed over to his parents. It is reported that he is currently receiving counseling and treatment at a child protection agency accompanied by an Abuse Prevention Officer (APO).

Constitutional Court

The police are considering whether to formally charge Ms. A. The suspected charge is a violation of the Child Welfare Act. The act of stripping a child naked and sending them out was ruled as emotional abuse by the Constitutional Court's full bench in October 2015. At that time, the full bench of the Constitutional Court legally defined the vaguely expressed "emotional abuse that harms a child's mental health and development," including the act of stripping a child naked and sending them out. It was judged that such acts could hinder or pose a significant risk to the normal maintenance and growth of a child's mental attitude or disposition to perceive, think, and judge things.

In September, the Suwon District Court also sentenced Ms. C, a former national women's basketball player, who was charged with stripping her stepdaughter naked and sending her out. The prosecution stated in the indictment that Ms. C committed emotional abuse that harmed the victim child's mental health and development, and the court accepted this and sentenced Ms. C to a fine. The presiding court stated, "Considering the overall impact on the victim child's development, Ms. C's actions are evaluated as emotional abuse."

However, it is still uncertain whether the same standard will apply to Ms. A. The police believe that Ms. A did not have intent and that the act of stripping Mr. B naked and sending him out was impulsive. Intent is an important criterion in applying child abuse charges. Attorney Junsung Jang (Law Firm How) said, "If there was intent to abuse the child by stripping and sending them out, it would be subject to criminal punishment, but if it was simply a disciplinary measure, factors such as habituality are comprehensively considered." According to the police, no other signs of abuse against Mr. B by Ms. A have been found so far. The police plan to initiate a formal investigation if Mr. B shows emotional instability or signs of abuse during the ongoing counseling at the child protection agency.