Uijeongbu Law Firm Case Example | Non-Referral for a Client Who Came to the Uijeongbu Office on a Special Assault Matter

This is the matter of a client who came to the Uijeongbu law firm and requested assistance.

The client is a service member and serves as a squad leader.

The client had ordinarily played soccer and similar activities with squad members, setting penalties in advance.

The penalties reportedly consisted mainly of receiving flicks on the forehead.

Up to that point, when there had been instances of striking in jest or causing harm by accident, the client reportedly resolved matters amicably with the squad members by apologizing.

Then, suddenly, one squad member reported the client for special assault.

The victim stated that the client struck the victim with a soccer ball and choked the victim with a metal clothes hanger.

However, this was very different from the facts, and the client felt that it was deeply unjust.

In the end, in order to prove the absence of charges, the client entrusted the matter to the Uijeongbu law firm.

When a person holding the status of a service member becomes involved in a criminal matter, that person is punished under the Military Criminal Act.

Military Criminal Act Article 60 (Assault, Intimidation, etc. against a Service Member, etc. Performing Official Duties)

(1) A person who commits assault or intimidation against a person performing official duties, other than a superior or a sentry, shall be punished according to the following classifications.

1) In the case of being in the presence of the enemy: imprisonment for not more than 7 years

2) In other cases: imprisonment for not more than 5 years or a fine not exceeding 10 million won

(2) A person who commits the crime under paragraph (1) by forming a group or by carrying a deadly weapon or other dangerous object shall be punished according to the following classifications.

1) In the case of being in the presence of the enemy: imprisonment for a definite term of not less than 3 years

2) In other cases: imprisonment for a definite term of not less than 1 year

(3) Where two or more persons jointly commit the crime under paragraph (1) without forming a group, the sentence prescribed in paragraph (1) shall be increased by up to one half.

(4) A person who commits a crime under paragraphs (1) through (3) and thereby causes the death of a service member, etc., other than a superior or a sentry, performing official duties shall be punished according to the following classifications.

1) In the case of being in the presence of the enemy: the death penalty, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for not less than 5 years

2) In the case of wartime, a state of emergency, or a martial law area: a person who commits the crime under paragraph (1) shall be subject to the death penalty, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for not less than 3 years; a person who commits the crime under paragraph (2) or (3) shall be subject to the death penalty, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for not less than 5 years

3) In other cases: a person who commits the crime under paragraph (1) shall be subject to life imprisonment or imprisonment for not less than 3 years; a person who commits the crime under paragraph (2) or (3) shall be subject to life imprisonment or imprisonment for not less than 5 years

(5) A person who commits a crime under paragraphs (1) through (3) and thereby causes bodily injury to a service member, etc., other than a superior or a sentry, performing official duties shall be punished according to the following classifications.

1) In the case of being in the presence of the enemy: life imprisonment or imprisonment for not less than 3 years

2) In other cases: imprisonment for a definite term of not less than 1 year

The victim stated that the client struck the victim with a soccer ball and attempted to choke the victim using a metal clothes hanger.

However, that statement was entirely untrue, and the client had never used a metal clothes hanger at all.

Accordingly, the attorney at the Uijeongbu law firm argued that the victim's statement lacked credibility.

Other squad members gave false statements claiming that they had witnessed the client assaulting the victim.

However, the attorney at the Uijeongbu law firm argued that the squad members' statements were false by establishing that the squad members were not present at the scene at the time of the incident.

The above matter was a case in which a client who is a service member was reported for special assault by a squad member and came to the Uijeongbu law firm to resolve the injustice.

If you have been wrongfully involved in a crime as described above, you are welcome to come to the Uijeongbu office of Daeryun at any time.