Case Type: Criminal Complaints Representation (School Violence - Bodily Injury & Habitual Intimidation) 

Disposition: Criminal Charges Sustained and Forwarded to Prosecution (Charges of Bodily Injury and Habitual Intimidation Successfully Proven)

Case Summary: 

The client was the legal guardian of a middle school student who suffered a nasal bone fracture (requiring 4 weeks of medical treatment) after being struck in the face by a ball intentionally thrown by the perpetrator during physical education class. Following the incident, rather than showing remorse, the perpetrator repeatedly threatened the victim over a two-month period, stating on five separate occasions, "I will break your spine next." Due to severe psychological distress, the victim was forced to transfer schools and relocate. Although the victim's family initially completed a civil mediation awarding 1,000 Singapore dollars (10,000,000 KRW) in damages hoping for an amicable resolution, they ultimately retained our firm to pursue criminal accountability due to the perpetrator’s continuous lack of genuine apology and defiant demeanor.

Legal Strategy & Representation: 

To substantiate the severity of the offenses, our legal counsel structured the criminal complaint under two distinct legal theories. First, regarding the charge of Bodily Injury (Article 257, Paragraph 1 of the Criminal Act), we medically established a clear causal relationship between the assault and the physical injury by securing 3D CT scan results and expert medical certificates from a university hospital. Second, concerning Habitual Intimidation (Article 283, Paragraph 1 and Article 285 of the Criminal Act), we invoked the precedent established by the Supreme Court of Korea (Supreme Court Decision 2017Do21663, Pronounced on April 24, 2018). As the Supreme Court defines "habitualness" under the Criminal Act as an individual's ingrained propensity or habit, we precisely documented the specific dates, times, and contents of the repeated threats utilizing objective evidence such as text message logs and audio recordings. By consolidating these isolated incidents into a systematic pattern of habitual crime, we robustly demonstrated the perpetrator's culpability. The investigative authority fully accepted our brief and sustained all charges of bodily injury and habitual intimidation against the perpetrator.

Case Inquiries: Attorney Min-hoo Kim