Singer and actress Son Dam Bi has partially won a civil lawsuit against malicious online commenters who attacked her over the sexual crime case involving her brother-in-law, former figure skating coach Lee Kyu Hyun.
According to legal sources on January 7, the Civil Division 12 of the Seoul Western District Court ordered two defendants to pay damages of 300,000 KRW (about 207 USD) and 200,000 KRW (about 140 USD) respectively, totaling 500,000 KRW (about 345 USD), for posting defamatory comments targeting Son.
Son had initially sought 23 million KRW (about 15,900 USD) in compensation. However, the court determined the final amount after comprehensively considering the content and severity of the comments, as well as the surrounding circumstances. It was also reported that Son filed similar suits against three additional commenters but later withdrew those cases during the proceedings.
In its ruling, the court stated that the defendants used contemptuous language and profanity that infringed upon the plaintiff’s personal rights, adding that they were obligated to provide monetary compensation for the resulting emotional distress.
The lawsuit stemmed from the sexual assault case involving Lee, the younger brother of Son’s husband, former speed skating national team athlete Lee Kyu Hyuk. Lee Kyu Hyun, who had been coaching a teenage minor, was accused in early 2022 of luring the student under the pretext of celebrating her school admission, encouraging her to drink alcohol, and attempting to assault her sexually. Prosecutors also confirmed during the investigation that Lee had illegally filmed the victim during the attempted assault. He was formally indicted in June of that year.
In January 2023, the Criminal Division 1 of the Uijeongbu District Court Namyangju Branch sentenced Lee to four years in prison on charges including attempted rape, indecent assault by compulsion, and violations of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes. The court additionally ordered him to complete 40 hours of sexual violence treatment programs and imposed a 10-year ban on employment at institutions related to children. He is currently serving his sentence at Uijeongbu Prison.
While the criminal trial was ongoing in 2022, Son became the target of intense online abuse solely because she married Lee’s older brother. Malicious commenters hurled remarks such as “She married into a rapist’s family” and “She married for money and got what she deserved,” subjecting her to harsh and demeaning criticism unrelated to any wrongdoing on her part.
Ultimately, Son initiated legal action in February 2025 in response to what she described as comments amounting to an assault on her dignity. Legal observers interpret the ruling as a clear affirmation that indiscriminate attacks on an individual based on the crimes of a family member, rather than the individual’s own actions, constitute an unlawful violation of personal rights.
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