40s Parent Fined for Spreading False Information at Parent Meeting

Busan Court Building. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Seul-gi] A parent in their 40s who made defamatory remarks about another parent at a parents' meeting was sentenced to a fine.

The Busan District Court Criminal Division 10 (Presiding Judge Lee Seong-jin) announced on the 18th that it sentenced A (female, in her 40s), who was indicted on charges of defamation, to a fine of 5 million won.

A is accused of defaming B, a parent of the same elementary school and operator of a local sports center, with false information at a birthday party gathering for an elementary school child in early May last year.

According to the verdict, A reportedly made false statements at the birthday party meeting, saying, "I heard that B had an unfortunate incident involving sexual harassment of students at the center."

During the investigation, A claimed, "I only spoke to the parent sitting next to me at the time, so there was no possibility of spreading the information, and I did not realize that the words would be passed on."

A also argued, "I only mentioned the rumor that was circulating at the time to emphasize that parents should take good care of their children, and I had no intention of damaging the victim's reputation."

However, the court stated the sentencing reasons, saying, "The defendant failed to testify about the source of the rumor even to the police and in court, making it difficult to believe that such a rumor existed at the time. Even if the defendant only spoke to another parent, it is unlikely that the parent would keep it confidential, and considering that the parent who heard the story actually spread it to others, the defendant's claim that she did not recognize the possibility of dissemination is also unfounded."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.