A Man Entered a PC Bang to Peek at a Woman's Legs... Supreme Court Rules "Not Trespassing"

Court: "Building manager likely did not consent to entry... Cannot definitively rule as trespassing"

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Kyung-jun] The Supreme Court has ruled that even if a man entered a PC bang to ogle women's legs, he cannot be punished for 'trespassing on a building.'

The Supreme Court's 3rd Division (Presiding Justice Lee Heung-gu) overturned the lower court's ruling that sentenced a man, Mr. A, to eight months in prison on charges of public indecency and trespassing, and remanded the case to the Daejeon District Court on the 3rd.

Mr. A is accused of approaching Ms. B, who was selecting items at a household goods store last February, exposing his lower body and committing an obscene act, and then, 10 minutes later, peeping at women's legs under tables in a PC bang for about 40 minutes.

The first and second trials found Mr. A guilty on all charges and sentenced him to eight months in prison. They also ordered him to complete 40 hours of sexual violence treatment programs and imposed a three-year employment restriction at child and youth-related institutions and welfare facilities for the disabled.

The Supreme Court ruled that the trespassing charge could not be upheld. This was based on the new criteria for residential trespassing established by the Supreme Court's full bench in March, which revised the 1997 'Chowon Bokjip' precedent.

At that time, the full bench stated, "If a person enters a business place open to the public with the business owner's consent and by the usual means of entry, it does not constitute trespassing under the law unless there are special circumstances."

Furthermore, it ruled, "Even if the person entered the business place for criminal purposes or if the business owner knew the actual purpose and would not have consented, such circumstances alone do not objectively and outwardly show that the person disturbed the peaceful state of the premises at the time of entry, and thus it does not constitute trespassing."

The court concluded, "Even if the building manager knew that the defendant entered the PC bang to ogle women using computers and would not have consented to his entry, this does not necessarily establish the crime of trespassing."