The prosecution has dismissed the complaint related to allegations of school violence involving the son of former People Power Party leader Han Donghoon. The prosecution also decided to dismiss the case against Han's spouse, Jin Eunjeong, a U.S. attorney, and Lee, the principal of Gangnam A Middle School, who were named in the same complaint.
According to legal sources on May 11, the Women and Children Crime Investigation Division 1 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Kim Jihae) dismissed on May 8 the complaint against the former party leader for abuse of authority and violation of the School Violence Prevention Act. A dismissal means that the case is closed without a substantive review because it does not meet the requirements for applying the relevant laws.
The civic group Citizens' Action for Judicial Justice filed a complaint with the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials in April last year against Han and others in connection with a school violence incident that occurred at A Middle School in May 2023.
The incident in question involved a report that five male students had assaulted one female student, prompting a police response. However, the report was withdrawn the following day, as it was deemed a false alarm. The civic group claimed that Han's son was involved in this incident, and that Han, who was the Minister of Justice at the time, exerted pressure to cover up the case.
After receiving the case from the Corruption Investigation Office, the prosecution concluded that there was no evidence of wrongdoing by Han. Regarding the abuse of authority charge, the prosecution stated that the matter did not fall within the official duties of the Minister of Justice. For the alleged violation of the School Violence Prevention Act, the prosecution noted that there are no applicable penalty provisions, and thus found no grounds for the charges.
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