Charged with Child Abuse for Swearing in Soliloquy
Court: "Suspended Sentence Due to Mitigating Circumstances"
A teacher who cursed at an elementary school student who rebelled with annoyance when instructed to put their cellphone in their bag received a suspended sentence.
According to a report by Yonhap News on the 25th, Judge Kim Ji-yeon of the Gwangju District Court Criminal Division 6 announced that she suspended the sentence of a 500,000 won fine for elementary school teacher A (58), who was indicted for violating the Child Welfare Act (child abuse).
Teacher A was indicted on charges of cursing at student B, a 4th grader, in a classroom at an elementary school in Gwangju in May 2022. While disciplining B to put his cellphone in his bag, B showed annoyance by slamming his desk, and A muttered to himself, "ssagaji eopsneun XX" (a rude expression). Teacher A also punished B by making him stand at the back of the classroom for about 10 minutes and was charged with grabbing his collar.
Teacher A claimed, "I was angry at B's behavior and only muttered to myself; it was not intended to insult the victim, so it does not constitute emotional abuse."
However, the court did not accept Teacher A's claim. The court stated, "Educational corporal punishment such as discipline and admonition is only allowed in unavoidable situations," and judged that "the defendant's actions objectively exceeded the purpose and scope of discipline and constitute emotional abuse." Nevertheless, considering "the fact that B's attitude toward the teacher's guidance at the time was inappropriate, which is a mitigating circumstance," the court decided to suspend the sentence.
A suspended sentence defers the pronouncement of a sentence for a certain period for minor crimes, and if two years pass from the day the suspension is granted, it is as if no guilty verdict was pronounced.
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