805 Million Won Paid to 16 People with 50,000 to 2.5 Million Won Each
Only Cases Smaller Than 2㎡ Per Person Recognized
Another ruling has been made that the state must compensate inmates confined in spaces smaller than the minimum area of 2㎡ per person required to maintain human dignity.
On the 11th, according to the legal community, Judge Jang Won-jeong of the Civil Division 48 at the Seoul Central District Court ruled that the state must pay damages in a lawsuit filed by 29 plaintiffs, including Mr. A, against the state.
The 29 plaintiffs, including Mr. A, filed the lawsuit in March 2021, claiming that they suffered mental distress from being confined in spaces smaller than the minimum area of 2.58㎡ per person required to maintain human dignity, and demanded compensation calculated by multiplying 9,000 won by the number of days each was detained.
The court stated, "If the area per person, excluding the restroom, is so cramped that even daily life according to basic human needs is difficult, it is reasonable to consider that this itself infringes on human dignity and value," and ruled that the defendant must pay between 50,000 and 2,500,000 won to 16 of the plaintiffs.
However, the court did not accept the plaintiffs' claim that the minimum detention area per person is 2.58㎡ based on the Ministry of Justice's 'Standards for Correctional Facilities' or 'Guidelines on Classification, Transfer, and Records of Detainees,' and only accepted claims from those confined in spaces smaller than 2㎡ based on Supreme Court rulings.
The court viewed that "these are merely administrative standards established by the state itself and do not have external binding force."
The state argued, "From January 2020, to prevent COVID-19 infections, it was inevitable to isolate new inmates for a certain period, which caused overcrowding among other inmates," but the court rejected this, citing lack of evidence.
Meanwhile, on August 29, 2023, Mr. B, who was incarcerated in a prison, filed a claim for mental damages against the state, alleging that he was confined for a long time in a cramped shared cell mixed with multiple people in 2021, infringing on his human dignity and value.
Mr. B claimed that after filing a constitutional complaint and raising objections to prison administration regarding illegal and unfair acts by the prison, he was subjected to retaliatory and punitive measures by being confined for a long time in shared cells.
The court rejected Mr. B’s claim but recognized the state’s liability for compensation. Considering the government’s efforts to improve correctional environments and that Mr. B spent most of his detention period in a single-occupancy cell, the compensation amount was set at 400,000 won.
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