I find it incredible that there are people who are let go even though they should obviously be put behind bars. Regardless, if a person is charged and a suspect in a murder case should they really be let free. In my opinion I believe that the prosecutors didn't do a good job in the case and the Korean government failed to do their part in the matter. It's cases like these and the one concerning Jamie Penich's murder that leave you wondering if the government of a country is truly capable….

If the Korean gov't allowed him to have possession of his passport (appears they did) and his name wasn't on the roster at immigration of those not allowed to leave the country (that also appears to be the case) – why do you say he left the country illegally?

It sounds like the Korean gov't probably didn't want him to leave – but did nothing to stop him – and he left the country legally.

Anyway, about double jeopardy, I think Patterson was not tried and convicted for the murder charge, but rather a weapons carrying charge (and maybe an evidence disposal charge), so if I'm right then deciding there's enough evidence to try him for murder would not constitute double jeopardy.

Also, though he was released (mistakenly) as part of the 8.15 amnesty that one year, I think he illegally left the country to flee further prosecution, for whatever that's worth.

I haven't seen the movie, but the actual story — as reported in the Korean press — paints a picture of incompetence and miscommunication by different groups of authority.

You call yourself dogeater…that doesn't have anything to do with wanting to see guys who are hung, does it?

BINGO!

As said, looks like the Korean government/prosecutors are "doing something" just to make it look like they are doing something.

The public will forget soon enough.

That being said, both Lee & Patterson deserve to rot in jail!

Patterson…was convicted and sentenced to 18 months, but was released from prison early in 1998 as part of the annual Aug. 15 liberation day amnesty granted by the South Korean government to some 2,000 convicts.

Looks like he was tried, sentenced, and served his time. I can't imagine the US would even consider extraditing him unless some very significant new evidence surfaces – and a movie doesn't constitute new evidence – but that looks like the only thing "new" about this case.

Otherwise, it would be a case of double jeopardy.

http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=66835

SEOUL — Prosecutors have reopened the investigation into a politically charged 1997 murder here and plan to seek extradition of a suspect in the case with ties to U.S. Forces Korea, Korean media outlets have reported.

The renewed interest in the case of a Korean man who was stabbed to death in a Burger King restaurant near Yongsan Garrison comes in the wake of the fall release of a popular movie — “The Case of Itaewon Homicide” — based on the killing and the systemic failures that eventually led to the release of the two suspects.

Some Koreans believe suspects with ties to the U.S. military receive favorable treatment in cases involving Korean victims. That has been the cause of occasional protests over the years in South Korea, where 28,500 American servicemembers are stationed.

In April 1997, 23-year-old university student Cho Chong-pil was stabbed repeatedly and killed in a Burger King bathroom in Itaewon, an entertainment district in Seoul popular with American servicemembers and other foreigners in South Korea. Two Americans — Arthur Patterson and Eddie Lee — were charged in the killing, which investigators at the time said appeared to be random and similar to a U.S. gang-style murder. The two suspects blamed each other for the fatal stabbing.

Lee, a Korean-American with no connections to USFK, was charged with murder and sentenced to life in prison. A higher court, however, reduced that sentence to 20 years and ultimately acquitted Lee for lack of evidence after he had served 18 months.

Patterson, the dependent of a contract worker for USFK, was charged with possessing a deadly weapon and destroying evidence. He was convicted and sentenced to 18 months, but was released from prison early in 1998 as part of the annual Aug. 15 liberation day amnesty granted by the South Korean government to some 2,000 convicts.

Prosecutors promised at the time to pursue the case further and perhaps file harsher charges against Patterson, but he was mistakenly allowed to leave South Korea.

A Seoul court in 2006 ordered the South Korean government to pay the victim’s family $34,000 for mistakes made in the handling of the case.

Then came the release of the movie. According to Yeon Hye-young, the marketing team leader for the film, it was inspired by the idea that “one of them, or both of them, surely killed an innocent person, but they were set free and walked away.”

“Rage, fury and sadness over the injustice about this cold case is another factor we want to talk about through the movie,” she said. “[It is] our hope that such an event must not happen again in our land.”

The movie was shown at about 200 theaters around South Korea upon its release.

This month, Korean media outlets reported that the foreign affairs division of the Seoul prosecutor’s office and the Ministry of Justice are seeking extradition of the 32-year-old Patterson from the U.S. government. Time is of the essence since there is a 15-year statute of limitations to prosecute such cases in South Korea.

Spokesmen for the prosecutor’s office and the Ministry of Justice refused to comment on the case when contacted by Stars and Stripes.

It does not follow the facts exactly- some dramatization of events- and it is generally not well made. It has too many abrupt jumps in scenes without adequate explanation of what has happened.

That being said, I was glad to see that it is not an anti-US propaganda vehicle. The focus on the movie are the critical, monumental screw-ups by the K authorities in the investigation and the crippling doubt and fear by the main prosecutor over whether he is pursuing the case correctly and if he even has the the right guy pinned for it.

As for the anti-US groups using this as propaganda, I just don't think it will work. Most everyone knows that the blame for this fiasco lies with the K authorities.