Daejeon Deceased Teacher Received 14 Parental Complaints Over 4 Years

Two People Visited School and Made 7 Phone Complaints
Also Posted 7 Times on the National Newspaper Platform

It has been revealed that Mr. A, an elementary school teacher in Daejeon who recently passed away by suicide, received a total of 14 parental complaints over four years in addition to reports to the police and the School Violence Countermeasures Committee (hereinafter 'School Violence Committee').

On the 15th, the Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education stated, "As a result of the investigation so far, it has been confirmed that from 2019 to 2022, two complainants filed a total of seven complaints to the National Petition Portal, with one and six complaints respectively."

According to the Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education, two parents, including Mr. B, filed a total of seven complaints against Mr. A, who was their children's homeroom teacher at the time, in 2019. Furthermore, from 2020, when Mr. A was no longer the homeroom teacher, they filed an additional seven complaints over three years. Mr. A was continuously troubled by a total of 14 complaints over four years.

In front of the store operated by a parent accused of filing malicious complaints against an elementary school teacher in Daejeon on the 12th, condolence wreaths and notes criticizing the parent are placed.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Mr. B and others visited the school in person or made phone calls, and posted claims on the National Petition Portal alleging that Mr. A had committed child abuse. They even filed a lawsuit against Mr. A with investigative authorities. In December 2019, despite Mr. A being a teacher and not a student, and thus not subject to the School Violence Committee's jurisdiction, Mr. B and others insisted on filing a report and later accused Mr. A of child abuse.

After a 10-month investigation by authorities, Mr. A was cleared of abuse charges in October 2020, and the School Violence Committee also ruled 'not applicable' without assistance from the school.

The Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education said it is investigating various suspicions related to Mr. A's death. Regarding the fact that the school did not convene the Teacher Rights Protection Committee, they stated, "There are no remaining documents submitted by Mr. A requesting the convening of the Teacher Rights Protection Committee at that time. Since requests can be made through documents or orally, we are investigating whether Mr. A asked colleagues or others to hold the committee."

Additionally, the Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education is conducting a fact-finding investigation into allegations that school administrators tried to persuade Mr. A, who suffered from malicious complaints, to 'endure it and apologize,' and that Mr. A faced difficulties obtaining sick leave approval during the 'Stop Public Education Day.'

Lee Cha-won, Auditor of the Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education, said, "If any illegality is confirmed, strict disciplinary action will be taken against the relevant public officials. Although we do not have investigative authority over parents, if inappropriate suspicions are found, we will consider requesting an investigation or filing charges."

Mr. A passed away on the 7th, two days after being transferred to a hospital following a suicide attempt at his home in Daejeon on the afternoon of the 5th. According to the Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education and the Daejeon Teachers' Union, Mr. A had been subjected to malicious complaints for years, including being accused of child abuse by a parent after sending a student who assaulted a friend to the principal's office at an elementary school in Daejeon in 2019.

Meanwhile, Mr. A's bereaved family announced on the 13th that they plan to sue the parent who filed malicious complaints for defamation of the deceased and threats. After completing legal review, the family plans to submit a complaint to the police in early October.

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