"Forcing a kiss, why didn't you bite the tongue?"... Sexual assault case investigation, victim still facing secondary harm

Selected by the National Sexual Violence Counseling Center Council
"'Resisting with All One's Might' Is an Outdated Harm"

It has been found that secondary victimization often occurs during the investigation or trial of sexual violence cases involving victims.

Yonhap News

According to the results of the "2024 Citizen Monitoring Group's Selection of Stepping Stones and Obstacles for Human Rights Protection in the Investigation and Trial Process of Sexual Violence," conducted by the National Sexual Violence Counseling Center Council (Jeonseonghyeop), a women's organization related to sexual violence, there were 9 stepping stone cases, 10 obstacle cases, and 1 special stepping stone case. Among the obstacle cases, 2 were from the prosecution, 1 from the police, and 7 from the courts. "Stepping stones" refer to positive cases, while "obstacles" refer to negative cases.

A representative case involved the Jeonju District Prosecutors' Office Jeongeup Branch, where during the investigation, victim A, who was raped, sexually assaulted, and threatened by a workplace superior, was asked, "Why didn't you bite his tongue when he forced a kiss?" and "You gave him the opportunity, that's why it happened." Subsequently, the prosecution decided not to indict.

Additionally, the Women and Youth Investigation Team 2 of the Yeongdeungpo Police Station in Seoul received records from the victim documenting repeated rape, assault, threats, and stalking throughout the dating period, but decided not to prosecute. The reason given was that "although the behavior may be unpleasant and annoying, it does not cause feelings of anxiety or fear."

Furthermore, the 11th Criminal Division of the Seoul Western District Court acquitted the defendant in a forced molestation and rape case, stating that the victim "did not resist vigorously or with extreme refusal." Jeonseonghyeop criticized this, saying, "The court acquitted based on the outdated standard of 'resisting with all one's might,' which was discarded 20 years ago," and added, "It revealed an archaic harm that forces victims to conform to certain expectations."

Other selected cases included ▲a ruling lacking understanding of the particularities of sexual violence against persons with disabilities (Seoul Central District Court, 31st Criminal Division) and ▲a ruling that narrowly interpreted the meaning of 'filming' due to misunderstanding the characteristics of digital sex crimes (Supreme Court, 3rd Division).

On the other hand, stepping stone cases included 1 from the prosecution, 1 from the police, and 7 from the courts. Notably, the Supreme Court, 1st Division, overturned and remanded a lower court ruling after three years based on "gender sensitivity" regarding a counterclaim of false accusation (malicious prosecution) by a sexual violence victim. Also, the Uijeongbu District Prosecutors' Office received praise for amending the indictment in a case where a national team coach, an adult male, sexually assaulted a victim who was an athlete and a child or adolescent, based on an understanding of the hierarchical structure in the sports world, sounding an alarm on sexual violence in sports.

Other selected cases included ▲an investigation revealing sexual exploitation disguised as dating involving persons with disabilities (Daejeon Police Agency Women's Crime Special Investigation Team) and ▲a ruling reflecting the characteristics of sexual violence within churches (Gwangju District Court, 11th Criminal Division).

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