[Non-Prosecution Defense Case Involving a Criminal Defense Attorney] The Criminal Defense Attorney Assisted a Client Charged with Joint Assault Arising from a Conflict over Inter-Floor Noise, Resulting in Conclusion at the Prosecution Stage

During the consultation with the criminal defense attorney, the client shared that the client had a conflict with the complainants, who lived in the unit below, over inter-floor noise.

The complainants claimed that the client had struck them.

However, the client had not assaulted the complainants and felt deeply aggrieved. The client entrusted the case to the criminal defense attorney and requested that the attorney resolve this sense of injustice.

The issue in this case, as analyzed by the criminal defense attorney, was that the client had not used violence against the complainants.

On the contrary, the client had been assaulted by the complainants and suffered bodily injury. As there had been an inter-floor noise issue prior to the incident, sufficient explanation of this aspect was necessary.

The criminal defense attorney promised to respond promptly to the joint assault charge applied to the client.

Let us examine the sentencing for joint assault together with the criminal defense attorney.

Statutes Relevant to Joint Assault

Article 257 of the Criminal Act (Bodily Injury, Bodily Injury to a Lineal Ascendant) (1) A person who inflicts bodily injury upon another shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than 7 years, suspension of qualifications for not more than 10 years, or a fine of not more than 10 million won.
(2) A person who commits the crime under paragraph (1) against his or her own or a spouse's lineal ascendant shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than 10 years or by a fine of not more than 15 million won.
(3) An attempt to commit the crimes under the preceding two paragraphs shall be punished.

Article 258 of the Criminal Act (Serious Bodily Injury, Serious Bodily Injury to a Lineal Ascendant) (1) A person who inflicts bodily injury upon another and thereby causes danger to life shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than 1 year and not more than 10 years.
(2) The same punishment as in the preceding paragraph shall apply to a person who, through bodily injury, causes another to suffer a disability or an incurable or hard-to-cure disease.
(3) A person who commits the crimes under the preceding two paragraphs against his or her own or a spouse's lineal ascendant shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than 2 years and not more than 15 years.

Article 260 of the Criminal Act (Assault, Assault Against a Lineal Ascendant) (1) A person who commits assault against the body of another shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than 2 years, a fine of not more than 5 million won, detention, or a minor fine.
(2) A person who commits the crime under paragraph (1) against his or her own or a spouse's lineal ascendant shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than 5 years or by a fine of not more than 7 million won.
(3) The crimes under paragraphs (1) and (2) may not be prosecuted against the express will of the victim.

The criminal defense attorney argued that, in this case, the complainants assaulted the suspect first, and that the suspect's party only tried to stop them and never used any violence.

The criminal defense attorney then stated that this could be confirmed through CCTV and other means, and submitted various items of evidence.

The criminal defense attorney emphasized that, due to the complainants' assault, the suspect suffered a serious bodily injury and was taken to the hospital. Along with this, the attorney submitted the suspect's medical records and other materials.

The criminal defense attorney stated that the suspect suffered psychological shock from this case and is receiving hospital treatment.

The criminal defense attorney emphasized that the suspect had suffered for years from the inter-floor noise conflict, and that the suspect, having even been charged in this case due to the complainants' unreasonable claims, is now expressing distress.