'Accused of Forcible Molestation of Student' Ha Il-ji, Former Dongduk Women's University Professor, Found Guilty in First Trial

Ha Il-ji, former professor at Dongduk Women's University

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] Ha Il-ji (real name Im Jong-ju), a former professor at Dongduk Women's University accused of sexually harassing a student, was found guilty in the first trial.

On the 8th, Judge Lee Mi-kyung of the Seoul Northern District Court Criminal Division 9 sentenced former professor Ha, who was charged with forcible molestation, to one year in prison with a two-year probation. He was also ordered to attend 40 hours of sexual violence treatment lectures and was banned from employment at child and youth-related institutions and welfare facilities for the disabled for three years.

Former professor Ha is accused of forcibly molesting student A on December 10, 2015, including kissing her. Ha’s side has denied all charges, claiming that the victim implicitly consented to the kiss at the time. They also argued that the credibility of the testimony is questionable, citing an email sent by the victim after the incident stating that "there was not no rational feeling."

The court recognized all the charges as guilty on this day. The court stated, "As a writer and professor, the desire to be recognized by the defendant as a student and the resentment toward the perpetrator as a victim of sexual harassment can coexist. Based on the email content, it cannot be assumed that the victim consented to the kiss with rational feelings, and the credibility of the testimony cannot be rejected."

Furthermore, the court said, "Although the victim suffered significant mental distress due to the crime, the defendant does not admit the crime, claiming that the kiss was 'the warmest expression of affection a professor can show a student.' After the crime, the defendant also filed a defamation lawsuit against the victim and held a press conference to unilaterally disclose the email content, which is also unfavorable circumstantial evidence."

Former professor Ha claimed that A’s allegations were false and sued A for defamation and threats, but the prosecution dismissed the charges against A.

Meanwhile, Ha, who was suspended from his position after the controversy arose, retired from Dongduk Women's University as of September 1 of this year.

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