A man in his 30s has been fined 500,000 KRW (approx. 355 USD) for leaving an insulting comment about former K-pop trainee Han Seo Hee. The man referred to as Mr. A claimed the comment was only satire, not an insult, but the court denied his defense in both the first and second trials.

According to the legal community on the 10th, the Seoul Central District Court’s 50th Criminal Division (Presiding Judge Cha Young Min) upheld the 500,000 KRW fine for Mr. A in the second trial on defamation charges. The sentence was finalized since neither the prosecution nor Mr. A appealed the ruling.

In December 2022, an article titled “Han Seo Hee Faces Prison Sentence Again in Third Drug Case… Appeals for Leniency” was published online. Mr. A posted a comment on that article, stating, “Can’t give up drugs and s*x. If you just shake a little plastic bag of white powder in front of her, her pupils will quake and she’ll start unbuttoning lol.”

Han Seo Hee personally filed a defamation complaint against Mr. A. In South Korea, defamation is an “offense subject to complaint,” meaning prosecution can only proceed if the victim files a report. The crime is recognized when a statement expresses contempt that damages a person’s social reputation.

During the trial, Mr. A denied the charge through a court-appointed attorney. His defense argued, “The comment was meant as satire, imagining a ridiculous situation where the victim mistakes a bag of flour for drugs,” and insisted there was no intent to insult, pleading innocence.

However, the court did not accept this defense during the first trial. In July last year, Presiding Judge Lee Chun Geun of the Seoul Central District Court’s Criminal Division 1 found Mr. A guilty and imposed a fine of 500,000 KRW.

The court stated, “The comment cannot be regarded as mere satire,” and added, “It was clearly an expression intended to demean the victim’s character and can be recognized as insulting.”

It concluded, “Considering the content, tone, intent, and consequence of the expression, it cannot be seen as acceptable behavior within societal norms.”

Mr. A appealed, adding new claims in the second trial. He argued that the word “s*x” didn’t refer to sexual activity but to the Korean pronunciation of “sacks,” meaning bags. He also claimed that “unbuttoning” didn’t imply disrobing, but rather loosening sleeves to inject drugs.

The appellate court also rejected these explanations. The Seoul Central District Court’s 50th Criminal Division again ruled in favor of the original fine.

The court stated, “Taking all factors into account, the comment implies that if someone shakes a drug-filled plastic bag in front of the victim, she would start undressing,” and said, “Mr. A’s excuse is unconvincing.”

The ruling added, “The comment demeans the victim through sexual objectification and is a degrading expression that damages her social reputation.”

Regarding the sentencing, the court stated, “The first trial already took both favorable and unfavorable circumstances into account,” and “There is no reason to alter the sentencing.”

Han Seo Hee was previously given a suspended prison sentence in 2016 for smoking marijuana with former Big Bang member T.O.P (Choi Seung Hyun, 38). She continued using drugs during the probation period and was eventually sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison. She was released in November 2023 after serving her full sentence.

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