Cheonan City Council Member Lee Jongdam Suspended from Council Attendance Until the 28th for Alleged Colleague Harassment

Supreme Court Dismisses Reappeal for Suspension of Execution

Lee Jongdam, a member of the Cheonan City Council in South Chungcheong Province who was indicted without detention on charges of molesting a fellow female council member, will have his council activities restricted until the 28th of this month.

According to the council on the 7th, the Supreme Court dismissed without deliberation the appeal filed by Lee against the suspension of execution on December 24 last year.

The council received the notification of this decision on the 2nd, and as a result, Lee is barred from attending council sessions from the day after the notification until the 28th.

During this period, Lee is restricted from participating in plenary sessions and official business trips, but is still allowed to access his office and conduct legislative research.

Previously, Lee was indicted on charges of deliberately touching a specific part of a fellow female council member during a commemorative photo session after a plenary session of a special meeting in January last year.

In response, during a regular session in June last year, the council voted 17 in favor and 8 against, out of 25 members present, to suspend Lee from attending for 30 days. However, Lee filed for a suspension of execution with the Daejeon District Court.

Meanwhile, at the first criminal trial held at the Cheonan branch of the Daejeon District Court on December 6 last year, Lee denied the charges, stating, "There was no intent." The next trial is scheduled for March 18 at 5 p.m.