A former judge-turned-lawyer who served as the Secretary for Public Office Discipline at the Blue House during the Park Geun-hye administration was sentenced to a suspended prison term in the first trial for forcibly molesting a junior colleague.
According to the legal community on the 6th, Judge Kwon Kyung-sun of the 20th Criminal Division at the Seoul Central District Court sentenced lawyer A, who was indicted on charges of forcible molestation, to six months in prison with a one-year suspension. The court also ordered 40 hours of sexual violence treatment lectures.
Lawyer A was brought to trial in March on charges of sexually harassing a junior lawyer from the same law firm in a taxi in August 2017 by touching the junior’s body and holding their hand.
The court ruled, “The defendant does not dispute the facts but claims that the acts do not constitute molestation; however, these actions were carried out against the victim’s will and constitute physical force infringing on sexual self-determination rights.”
Furthermore, the court stated, “Although the defendant molested the victim, who works at the same workplace, on two occasions, this is unforgivable. While 50 million won was deposited in escrow, the victim has no intention of receiving it. The sentencing also considered the absence of prior criminal records.”
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