Daeryun's Wonju office | A client charged with threat using filmed material, with the prosecutor's appeal dismissed and a ‘suspended sentence’

The circumstances of the case as understood by Daeryun's Wonju office are as follows.

The client was notified of a breakup by his girlfriend, whom he had been dating for a long time.

Shocked by the sudden breakup notice, he went to the front of her house to win her back and asked to talk, but she reportedly refused.

The client then showed his girlfriend a photograph of a woman's body stored on his cell phone and reportedly threatened her, saying something to the effect of “I took this while you were sleeping, and if you keep refusing to talk like this, I will post it on the internet and distribute it.”

In the end, his girlfriend reported the client to the police, and he came to face a criminal trial.

The client requested help from Daeryun's Wonju office, stating that the photograph he had shown his girlfriend was in fact a photograph of an unknown woman circulating on the internet and asking to please be spared an actual custodial sentence.

If one films another person unlawfully against their will, 🔗illegal filming using a camera is established, and the person is punished.

For this criminal act to be established, two conditions must be met.

1. It must be against the will of the person filmed

2. It must arouse sexual desire or a sense of shame

▣ Act on Special Cases concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes Article 14 (Filming Using a Camera, etc.)

① A person who films, against the will of the person filmed, the body of another person that may arouse sexual desire or a sense of shame by using a camera or other device with similar functions shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than seven years or a fine not exceeding fifty million won.

② A person who distributes, sells, leases, provides, or openly displays or screens a filmed material or its reproduction under paragraph (1), or a person who, even where the filming under paragraph (1) was not against the will of the person filmed at the time of filming, subsequently distributes such filmed material or its reproduction against the will of the person filmed, shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than seven years or a fine not exceeding fifty million won.

If, like the client above, one films another person without permission and uses it to commit threat or coercion, the above crime and the same Act apply, and the person is punished.

▣ Act on Special Cases concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes Article 14-3 (Threat or Coercion Using Filmed Material, etc.)
① A person who threatens another person using a filmed material or its reproduction (including a reproduction of a reproduction) that may arouse sexual desire or a sense of shame shall be punished by imprisonment for a definite term of not less than one year.
② A person who, by the threat under paragraph (1), obstructs another person's exercise of rights or causes them to do something they are not obligated to do shall be punished by imprisonment for a definite term of not less than three years.

The client committed this offense out of anger at the attitude of his girlfriend, who, after breaking up with him following about five years of dating, began dating another man within just a month.

However, during the investigation, he came to deeply realize the fear the victim must have felt, and accordingly made diligent efforts to compensate for the victim's harm, and the office argued the fact that he finally obtained a settlement agreement and a statement of no desire for punishment from the victim.

After graduating from high school, the client was a person who immediately found employment to support himself without his parents' help and sought to contribute to his family.

Citing the point that he was evaluated as diligent and exemplary at work, the office appealed for leniency.

As various sexual crimes have greatly increased in society, the courts are imposing strict punishment for related crimes.

In particular, as illegal filming crimes such as hidden cameras become more serious, the punishment provisions to address them are also being strengthened.

If you are facing related charges, we recommend retaining a specialist attorney to respond promptly.

At Daeryun Law Firm (LLC), a criminal specialist attorney and a sexual crimes specialist attorney form a task force to establish an optimal strategy for the defense against an actual custodial sentence for clients charged with committing a sexual crime using filmed material.