A court has ruled that Mina Kim, a member of the Changwon Special City Council in Gyeongnam, who was indicted on charges of making derogatory remarks toward the families of the Itaewon disaster victims, must pay damages to the bereaved families.
On September 10, the Seoul Central District Court’s Civil Division 912 (Presiding Judge Lee Sunhee) ruled partially in favor of the plaintiffs in the first trial of a damages lawsuit filed by 150 bereaved family members of the Itaewon disaster against Assemblywoman Kim, seeking a total of 457 million won in compensation.
Kim Mina, a member of the Changwon Special City Council in Gyeongnam, is leaving the courthouse after concluding a criminal trial. Photo by Lee Seryung
The court ordered Assemblywoman Kim to pay 3 million won to a specific bereaved family member identified as Mr. A, 1.5 million won to the spouse of a deceased victim, 1.2 million won to direct ascendants, 1 million won to a fianc?, 700,000 won to siblings, and 300,000 won to relatives, after she posted a photo on her social media at the time.
The court stated, "We recognize that her remarks constituted insulting and contemptuous personal attacks that infringed upon the plaintiffs' personal rights," and determined that Assemblywoman Kim is liable for damages.
Previously, in December 2022, Assemblywoman Kim was accused of posting a derogatory message about the Itaewon disaster on her social media account.
In connection with the Itaewon disaster that occurred in November of that year, she wrote comments such as, "The bereaved families are killing the souls of the young victims twice," "People are saying they are profiting off their children’s deaths," "Did they die saving the country?" "How much longer will the Democratic Party exploit the yellow ribbon for 8-9 years, and now the black ribbon?" and "These corpse-mongers."
In the related criminal trial for defamation, she received a suspended sentence of three months in prison for all charges.
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