Why Was the Sentence Reduced in the Second Trial for Illegal Filming of a Woman Showering 'Through the One-Room Window'?

Considering Voluntary Surrender to Investigative Authorities

A man in his 20s who secretly filmed a naked woman in her 20s showering in a one-room building with his cellphone received a lighter sentence in the appellate court than in the original trial.

According to Yonhap News on the 8th, the Chuncheon District Court Criminal Division 1 (Chief Judge Shim Hyun-geun) overturned the original sentence of one year imprisonment with two years probation given to A (25), who was charged with filming using a camera under the Sexual Violence Punishment Act, and instead sentenced him to a fine of 8 million won and ordered him to complete 40 hours of a sexual violence treatment program.

(This photo is not directly related to the article.) [Photo source=Pixabay]

A was charged with secretly filming B (22, female), who was showering naked, by opening the external bathroom window of the one-room building where B resided in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, around 12:30 PM on July 17 last year, using the video function of his cellphone camera.

The first trial court stated, "Considering the circumstances and method of the crime, the defendant's guilt is not light," and sentenced him to imprisonment with probation. The appellate court, reviewing the case after A’s appeal, reduced the sentence taking into account that A voluntarily appeared at the police station to confess, and that after depositing 5 million won to the victim in the original trial, he paid an additional 5 million won during the appeal to reach a settlement with the victim.

Dissatisfied with this ruling, A appealed again, claiming that the original sentence was too harsh.

The second trial court said, "The defendant is a first-time offender with no criminal record and voluntarily confessed the crime to the investigative authorities," and "The defendant deposited 5 million won to the victim in the original trial and paid an additional 5 million won in the second trial. The victim expressed that she does not wish for punishment against the defendant," and thus imposed a fine.

Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family’s report titled ‘2024 Life of Men and Women in Statistics,’ crimes involving illegal filming and distribution increased by about 6%, from 5,541 cases to 5,876 cases. Crimes such as threats and coercion using illegal footage surged nearly sevenfold in two years, from 120 cases in 2020 when statistics began, to 546 cases in 2021, and 821 cases in 2022. The total number of sexual violence crimes in 2022 was 40,515, a 26% increase from the previous year.