[Issue Pick] For the Son Who Hit Him... Father Pleaded for Leniency 16 Times

Struck Father’s Head with Wooden Sword
30s Man Sentenced to Prison in First Trial

Probation Reduced in Appeal Thanks to Father's Clemency Petition

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] A man in his 30s who was sentenced to prison in the first trial for hitting his father with a wooden sword and assaulting his mother was given a suspended sentence in the appeal trial. The decisive factor for the reduced sentence was the petition submitted by the parents he assaulted, pleading for leniency.

According to the legal community on the 11th, the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Appeal Division 1-1 (Presiding Judge Jaeyoung Kim) overturned the original sentence of 2 years imprisonment for Jang Mo (39), who was charged with special injury to a lineal ascendant, and sentenced him to 1 year imprisonment with a 2-year suspension. The court stated, "The defendant appears to have verbally and physically abused his parents even before this incident," but also considered "his depressive personality disorder and the multiple petitions submitted by his parents and family members pleading for leniency as mitigating factors."

Jang was prosecuted for injuring his father by hitting him three times with a wooden sword at their home in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, last December because his father did not call him to eat. The father suffered a head laceration from this unfilial act. Jang is also accused of repeatedly punching his mother without reason while she was cooking at home in the summer of 2019.

The first trial court sentenced Jang to prison, stating that "strict punishment is necessary." At that time, the court pointed out, "The defendant committed violence against his parents for reasons difficult to understand, and the danger was not light as he struck his father's head with a wooden sword," and "He did not reflect on his wrongdoing during the investigation and was quick to blame the victims."

The appeal trial began in February following Jang's appeal claiming the sentence was unfair. During the three months of the appeal trial, the father, who was assaulted by Jang, submitted a petition pleading for his son's leniency 16 times. In contrast, Jang submitted only two letters of apology to the court during this period.