'Sexual Assault Perpetrator Bit Tongue, Sentenced to Prison' Choi Malja... "Don't Remember Whether I Hired a Lawyer"

Choi's Attorney: "Illegal Arrest and Detention Must Be Examined"

The first trial of the retrial petition and remand trial for Choi Malja (78), who was punished for serious injury after biting off the tongue of a man who tried to sexually assault her 61 years ago, was held on the 22nd at the Busan High Court.

In 1964, Choi Mal-ja, who was arrested and convicted for "injury with intent" during the process of resisting sexual violence, is holding a press conference in front of the Supreme Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, in May 2020 before submitting a petition urging the reopening of her case to recognize self-defense. Photo by Yonhap News

At the trial held under the jurisdiction of the Criminal Division 2 of the Busan High Court (Chief Judge Lee Jae-wook), Choi's defense attorney said, "As per the Supreme Court's remand decision, please carefully review the parts regarding (Choi's) arrest and detention by the investigative authorities."

The prosecution stated, "Since the Supreme Court regarded the retrial petitioner's testimony itself as highly credible core evidence supporting the existence of grounds for retrial and remanded the case, we express the opinion to commence the retrial."

During the subsequent witness examination, the retrial petitioner Choi testified, "In early July 1964, I went to the prosecutor's office with my father, was investigated in a small room wearing prison clothes, and was in prison for a total of 6 months and 12 days."

When asked by the court, "Did you receive legal assistance from a lawyer during the prosecution investigation or trial process?" she replied, "I heard that my father hired a lawyer, but I do not remember clearly."

The court said, "The most important part to focus on is the illegal arrest and detention," and requested the defense to submit any additional materials if available.

Choi was sentenced by the Busan District Court to 10 months in prison with a 2-year probation for serious injury after biting off about 1.5 cm of the tongue of a man named Noh (then 21 years old) who tried to sexually assault her on May 6, 1964, when she was 18 years old. The court at that time judged that biting the tongue in resistance to the sexual assault did not constitute self-defense. Noh was sentenced to 6 months in prison with a 2-year probation for special trespassing and special intimidation charges, excluding attempted rape, which was a lighter sentence than Choi's.

Choi filed for a retrial in May 2020, 56 years after the incident, but the Busan District Court and Busan High Court dismissed the petition, stating there was no evidence to support Choi's claim that "the prosecutor illegally detained and coerced a confession" during the investigation. However, after more than three years of review, the Supreme Court found sufficient circumstances to believe Choi's claim was correct and remanded the case, stating that factual investigations by the court were necessary, including the original retrial judgment documents, newspaper articles, prisoner registers, criminal case files, and execution registers at that time.

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