Lee Gyunyong "Please Review the Entire Verdict Fairly"... Disclosure of Severe Punishment Cases for Sex Offenders

Lee Gyun-yong, nominee for Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (age 60, 16th Judicial Research and Training Institute class), has requested that the public "take a balanced look at all the rulings handed down during his tenure as a judge" in response to criticism that he lacks "gender sensitivity" after it was revealed that he reduced the sentence in a second trial involving a sex offender against minors.

Lee Gyun-yong, the next Supreme Court Chief Justice nominee, arrived at the Supreme Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the morning of the 23rd to meet with Chief Justice Kim Myeong-su and is giving an interview. August 23, 2023 Photo by Joint Press Corps

He expressed regret over the situation where only one specific case is reported as if he is lenient toward sex crimes or violent crimes, despite having handed down many cases where harsher sentences were imposed than in the first trial among the sex crime cases he presided over as a judge, and introduced several specific examples.

On the 27th, Lee issued a statement saying, "Although there are many rulings where strict judgments and sentences were imposed on violent crimes including sex crimes in the past, I regret that only some rulings with reduced sentences are being reported in the media recently," and added, "I ask that you take a balanced look at all the rulings handed down during my tenure as a judge."

He said, "In the appellate court, I have strived to impose appropriate sentences based on the belief that sentencing disparities in lower courts should be minimized and objective sentencing should be realized. In most cases, I respected the sentences imposed in the first trial, but after carefully reviewing sentencing factors, I sometimes imposed lighter sentences than those set in the first trial depending on the circumstances."

Lee also stated, "On the other hand, I imposed heavier sentences than the first trial on defendants who threatened victims demanding separation during a recidivist period with a kitchen knife, detained them for over seven hours, and attempted rape; defendants who caused serious consequences including the death of a child due to child abuse; and defendants who engaged in sexual transactions with minors during a probation period, in order to impose punishments commensurate with their responsibility."

He added, "Since some rulings are reported as if I am lenient toward sex crimes or violent crimes based only on the conclusions or wording of certain judgments, I would like to inform the public of several rulings in the hope that they will evaluate them in a balanced manner," and emphasized once again, "The sentencing in individual cases was the result of careful consideration in the role of an appellate judge who must ensure specific rationality and legal stability."

Lee disclosed five cases on the day.

First, he overturned the original ruling that sentenced a defendant to three years in prison for crimes including threatening a victim demanding separation during a recidivist period with a kitchen knife, detaining them for over seven hours, attempting rape, assault, and embezzlement, and instead sentenced the defendant to four years and six months in prison, stating, "Considering the very bad nature of the defendant's crime, the great pain and fear the victim must have suffered, and the serious molestation during the crime."

He also overturned the original ruling that sentenced a defendant to one year in prison with two years of probation for a case where the defendant, along with accomplices, deceived a victim into a conditional meeting, received 400,000 won, then threatened and assaulted the victim on the pretext of 'attempting prostitution with a minor,' causing the victim to give up a claim for the return of prostitution fees. He sentenced the defendant to two years and six months in prison, recognizing the crime as special robbery, considering the defendant's pre-planned role division with accomplices, the bad nature of the crime, and the lack of forgiveness from the victim.

In a case where the defendant purchased sex from a 17-year-old minor during a probation period, he overturned the original ruling that sentenced the defendant to eight months in prison and sentenced the defendant to one year and six months in prison in the appellate court, stating, "The first trial ruling, which considered as a favorable factor that if the defendant's prison sentence is confirmed, the previous probation would be nullified and an additional 3 years and 6 months of imprisonment would be required, is inappropriate."

Cases of strict punishment for violent crimes other than sex crimes were also disclosed on the same day.

Lee overturned the original ruling that sentenced a defendant to two years and six months in prison with four years of probation in a case where the defendant attempted to fraudulently apply for cultural heritage designation and deceived others into believing that a Hongshan jade vessel of unconfirmed authenticity was genuine, defrauding 500 million won. He recognized the defendant guilty of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (fraud) and the Cultural Heritage Protection Act, sentenced the defendant to three years in prison, and ordered the defendant's detention in court, citing the bad nature of the crime and lack of victim restitution.

He also sentenced a daycare teacher and director to prison terms in a criminal case involving the death of an 11-month-old infant, stating, "The outcome of the case is very serious, there are many victims, and even if the parents of the deceased child reached a settlement, the sentence in the first trial seems light." He sentenced the daycare teacher, who was sentenced to four years in prison in the first trial, to six years in prison, and sentenced the daycare director, who was sentenced to three years in prison with four years of probation in the first trial, to three years and six months in prison, ordering the director's detention in court.

The Seoul High Court Criminal Division 8, presided over by Lee, overturned the first trial ruling that sentenced defendant A to 10 years in prison for having sexual intercourse three times and engaging in sadistic sexual acts with a 12-year-old victim met through internet chat in November 2020, and sentenced him to seven years in prison. The court cited as reasons for mitigation that A confessed to the crime and was young in his 20s, leaving room for improvement and rehabilitation. After Lee was nominated as Chief Justice, controversy arose over whether he lacked gender sensitivity when the ruling became public.

In response to the controversy, Lee issued a clarifying statement on the 25th, explaining that he had carefully determined the sentence within the recommended range.

At the time, Lee said, "In the appellate court, I have strived to impose appropriate sentences by referring to the recommended sentencing range presented in the sentencing guidelines, based on the belief that sentencing disparities in lower courts should be minimized and objective sentencing should be realized."

He added, "In this case, the appellate sentence was derived considering the recommended sentencing range (4 years to 10 years and 8 months imprisonment) according to the multiple crime handling standards for statutory rape of minors, which is a serious crime among hypothetical concurrence crimes. The sentence was not reduced simply because the defendant confessed or was young. As stated in the judgment, I carefully determined the sentence within the recommended range by comprehensively considering the balance between crime and punishment, the degree of responsibility corresponding to the crime, the retributive function of punishment, and the purposes of general and special deterrence."

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