'Sewol Ferry Insult' Cha Myung-jin Guilty of Defamation...Court: "Remarks Have Significant Social Impact"

Former lawmaker Cha Myung-jin (64), who was indicted for making abusive remarks toward the 'Sewol Ferry victims' families,' was found guilty in the first trial.

The Criminal Division 14 of the Incheon District Court (Presiding Judge Ryu Kyung-jin) sentenced former lawmaker Cha to six months in prison with a one-year probation and ordered 80 hours of community service at the sentencing hearing held on the 6th. He was charged with insult and defamation.

Former lawmaker Cha was brought to trial on charges of insulting the Sewol Ferry victims' families through a post he wrote on his social media service (SNS) on April 15, 2019, ahead of the 5th anniversary of the Sewol Ferry disaster.

He wrote on Facebook, "Sewol Ferry victims' families. They shamelessly exploit the public's sympathy for their children's deaths, cooking it up, steaming it, and not stopping there, even picking the bones clean. They are really shameless."

Former National Assembly Member Cha Myung-jin
Photo by Yonhap News

He is also charged with defaming the Sewol Ferry victims' families through remarks such as "Do you know about the Sewol Ferry ○○○ incident?" and "Reveal the black truth of the Sewol Ferry tent, whether ○○○ is true or not" made during an election debate and campaign ahead of the April 15, 2020 general election.

The court stated, "The social impact caused by the defendant's remarks was considerable," and "Considering the weight of a politician's words, the defendant caused significant harm to the Sewol Ferry victims' families, making the nature of the crime serious."

However, the court explained the sentencing by saying, "The defendant has no prior criminal record except for a fine imposed long ago for another crime," and "In the case of the insult incident involving the Sewol Ferry victims' families, it is expected that damages will be compensated civilly through a lawsuit, among other factors."

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