Teacher who pressed temple with fist, Supreme Court rules "Not child abuse"

[Asia Economy Reporter Bae Kyunghwan] The Supreme Court has acquitted an elementary school teacher who was charged with abuse for pressing a student's temple. The court interpreted the act as educational rather than abusive, citing uncertain testimony and the mildness of the act.

On the 1st, the Supreme Court's 3rd Division (Presiding Justice Kim Jae-hyung) dismissed the prosecution's appeal in the final trial of Mr. A, who was charged with violating the Special Act on the Punishment of Child Abuse Crimes, and upheld the lower court's verdict of not guilty.

Mr. A, a homeroom teacher of a 2nd-grade elementary school class, was accused in March 2019 of pressing the temple of the victim child B (then 8 years old) with both fists because B did not attach a magnetic sticker used for homework verification during the inspection process. He was also accused of pretending to film with his mobile phone, citing B's poor class attitude. During this, he reportedly said, "Do your parents know you are behaving like this? I will film and send it."

In the first trial conducted as a citizen participation trial, the jurors found some of Mr. A's charges guilty, and the court sentenced him to a fine of 2 million won and ordered him to complete 40 hours of a child abuse treatment program. The victim child's mother's testimony in court and materials from classmates were accepted as evidence. Consideration was also given to the fact that after pressing the temple and filming, the victim child became reluctant to attend school and eventually transferred.

On the other hand, the second trial acquitted all charges, including those found guilty in the first trial. The court pointed out that the victim child's mother's testimony in the first trial included statements heard from her own child, other classmates, and their mothers. It also noted the possibility that the victim child's testimony about pressing the temple was exaggerated.

The second trial stated, "Mr. A's act of pressing the child's temple stemmed from an educational motive and purpose to alert the child about breaking rules," and "It is difficult to see that it reached a level that harms the child's physical health and development," thus acquitting him. Although the prosecution appealed, the Supreme Court finalized the verdict, stating, "There is no error in the legal interpretation regarding physical and emotional abuse."

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