By Here is an article that came my way via this week’s Open Thread which just goes to show that being a good samaritan in Korea can have consequences:
A bus driver who injured a sexual molester during an attempt to prevent him from assaulting another person was convicted of assault Sunday.
The Seoul Central District Court sentenced a 50-year-old bus driver to six months in jail, suspended for two years, after he injured a male student who molested a female passenger and then attacked a female escort on a school bus. [Korea Times]
Considering that his sentence was suspended it makes me wonder how much blood money the bus driver had to pay as well to the perpetrator of the sexual assault? So keep this story in mind the next time you wonder why a Korean bystander doesn’t instantly jump in to help someone.
12:36 pm on January 11th, 2011 1
I wouldn't recommend letting the "injured student" come to Texas… He might get a different result…
And I'd like to know if there's a way to show support for the driver…
12:48 pm on January 11th, 2011 2
He should have used an open hand and left no marks. Shame on him.
2:09 pm on January 11th, 2011 3
So was that assault about power or sex?
Does this fit into the "only in Korea" box?
2:22 pm on January 11th, 2011 4
It only fits into the South Korean legal self defense laws which mirror quite a few countries worldwide. In most US states you are not required to flee if the option is reasonably available but this is not the case in many places.
3:38 pm on January 11th, 2011 5
No good deed goes unpunished.
3:50 pm on January 11th, 2011 6
So to understand, when a crime is taking place in Korea, you do NOTHING to protect the victim? Seems to violate the "human rights" agenda they keep pushing in their government.
4:36 pm on January 11th, 2011 7
What about the human rights of the assailant?
No, you should simply stand nearby and mock the "victim" while the crime is taking place. You could also video it with your hand phone.
5:11 pm on January 11th, 2011 8
Remember the old military saying: "Never underestimate the power of human stupidity."
5:17 pm on January 11th, 2011 9
I think the bus driver didn't pay and that is why he is in such trouble. From the Times article: "Also he did not come to any settlement with the student,” the court said in a ruling. "
5:17 pm on January 11th, 2011 10
I'm with setnaffa in wondering if there's any way to help the driver out.
6:39 pm on January 11th, 2011 11
Doesn't this deserve a "Presidential Pardon" from LMB?
12:24 am on January 12th, 2011 12
All I know is the Driver deserves to have a standing ovation every time he walks into a room for being a man and a good example to others.
The punk needs his chops busted for being a (insert insensitive phrase here).
I'm not some UFC or kung fu warrior–or even the _moral_ equivalent of any active-duty GI (have you seen the size of the MPs outside Osan!)–but that type of misogyny really ticks me off…
1:46 am on January 12th, 2011 13
Apparently, the bus driver did not pay any blood money. The court saw through the retarded kid's parent's scheme.
"Also he did not come to any settlement with the student,” the court said in a ruling."
The "kid", assaulter, more than likely received the exact same sentence.
So, if you do get involved in some kind of problem and you injure a Korean DO NOT PAY BLOOD MONEY!!!!
If the prosecutors' office thinks your action(s) warrant(s) a criminal charge, any money paid to resolve the issue will not matter.
How do I know?
A few years back, a drunk Korean/American guy assaulted my then-pregnant wife. I smashed him in the face, causing permanent scaring. At the behest of my Korean cop brother in law, I paid the douche 4 million won blood money and we showed proof of this to the local police station thinking it would "go away".
Surprise! The prosecutors didn't think such behavior is appropriate and I was charged with assault. So was the douche.
In the end, we both received a 2 year suspended jail sentence. The difference was that he was deported a few months later for assaulting a Canadian couple at the local McD's and I'm still here. (the guy hated whitey).
If I could go back in time, I would've done the exact same things minus giving the douche blood money. What a mistake.
4:34 am on January 12th, 2011 14
"The kid, assaulter, more than likely received the exact same sentence."
I'd feel better if the bus driver was praised instead of prosecuted. The assaulter needs to be "counseled" until his violence against women is no longer a factor…
I don't see how he can complain if the driver had pulled out a baseball bat and broken both arms and both legs…
9:58 am on January 12th, 2011 15
I just love all the racist comments by whites in that site.
Can't go one day without these people generalizing.
We'll see who gets the last laugh.
10:41 am on January 12th, 2011 16
#15 Are you implying the bus driver was somehow wrong?
12:21 pm on January 12th, 2011 17
I'm not implying anything. Just disgusted at the responses of you arrogant Westerner retards writing comments in a Korean newspaper, who think they're so much better.
Look at what the condition of your country is in right now. It's terrible, but I'll bide my time until your completely rotting systems give me the opportunity to respond in kind in the near future.
2:38 pm on January 12th, 2011 18
"Tom" Yeah. He's probably the "he-man woman-hater" that got beat up by the driver…
3:44 pm on January 12th, 2011 19
I thought the bus driver was heroic. At age 50, he risked getting injured from the punk and fired from his job for protecting a young lady. It puzzles us Westerners why the prosecuting attorney would go after the driver since he was saving a defenseless girl. Most Western prosecuting attorneys would not even consider charging a bus driver for doing this. Actually, the police department and mayor would have recognized him as a hero and he would probably get a raise in the process. Hence, if the punk wasn't committing a crime, he wouldn't have been rough handled.
4:04 pm on January 12th, 2011 20
Tom tom tom. Just attacking the US again? how about this: Defend the decision to sentence the bus driver? Was it wrong or right? what is your opinion? Don't make it about countries, make it about the article and actions of those involved. Do you agree with the courts decision?
6:51 pm on January 12th, 2011 21
#20,
That is the law, which is based on German civil law. The Korean judge in this case, made the decision on the code of the law. He had no choice. I am not defending the law and this should be a question of whether to change the law or not based on its merit, which is something none of you either in this site and others, have even bothered to touch upon. Instead, you have inflammatory phrases like "blood money" that were made up by useless whining English teachers.
You guys are too busy using this incident to bash on Koreans as if Koreans approve what the criminal did, not necessarily just this site, but lots of others.
6:59 pm on January 12th, 2011 22
Tom, did you and your pal kushibo enjoy your vacation? Somehow you both disappeared at the same time.
7:39 pm on January 12th, 2011 23
Tom 21, does the Seoul Central District Court base its decisions on German civil law? That seems very strange.
8:00 pm on January 12th, 2011 24
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_code
Many legal systems in Asia are within the civil law tradition and have enacted a civil code, mostly derived from the German civil code; that is the case of Japan, Korea, Thailand (the Civil and Commercial Code), Taiwan, the Philippines and Indonesia which is influenced by the Dutch Civil Code (Burgerlijke Wetboek). Macau
8:22 pm on January 12th, 2011 25
Leon LaPorte 24, that is very strange. But it's in Wikipedia, so it must be true! It's strange especially for the Philippines. If they wanted to adapt western western civil law, Spain and the US would have been more obvious sources.
I learn so many amazing things at the ROK Drop.
10:14 pm on January 12th, 2011 26
Glans, it's amazing isn't it, instead of the usual reactionary expat mob mentality posts, how about learning something? I mean actually learning something, instead of screaming discrimination.
11:06 pm on January 12th, 2011 27
'a male student at a school for the disabled'
'went to intervene but ended up injuring the student's eye'
'it required six weeks of hospital treatment'
Did anybody read the article?
And any jurisdiction will consider proportionality in matters of self-defence/defence of others. The 'sane' person in this incident got a bit carried away, and gave the 'dim punk' a wailing.
Plus the bit about blood money.
3:17 am on January 13th, 2011 28
#27 Now wait a minute. In Korea you can spend 6 weeks in the hospital for almost anything, as long as money is involved. Hell, you can even go home at night…
Yes, I have an example: http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?a…
A stronger crackdown will be conducted on “absentee patients” who exaggerate their injuries to justify higher hospital costs. The mandatory submission of car repair quotes to auto insurers has also been specified. The measures will take effect immediately with revisions to the legal code to follow during the first quarter of 2011.
However, the authorities have delayed the resolution of some contentious issues for future negotiations.
Car repair costs can still reach up to 2 million won without increasing insurance payments. The policy, instituted by the current administration, has been criticized as causing a lot of inflated “1.99 million won car repairs.”
The generous hospital cost payoff rate by auto insurers is much higher than that of health insurance schemes and has been blamed for causing inflated hospital stays, but remained intact.
So, trust me, a lengthy hospital stay often has nothing to do with actual injuries.
/As far as wiki goes, it's easy and accessable. Look it up on Brittainica if you like.
7:05 am on January 13th, 2011 29
Leon Laporte 28, I like "easy and accessible".
11:49 am on January 13th, 2011 30
Interesting about the legal systems in Asia and their adoption of the civil code. But further wiki research:
Many civil law systems, which are common in Continental Europe, impose a far more extensive duty to rescue. The only exclusion is that the person must not endanger her/his own life or that of others, while providing rescue.
And under German criminal law:
In Germany, "Unterlassene Hilfeleistung" (neglect to provide assistance) is an offense according to paragraph 323c[28] of the Strafgesetzbuch; a citizen is obliged to provide help in case of accident or general danger if necessary, and is immune from prosecution if assistance is given in good faith turns out to be harmful.
I would argue there is a precedence set in civil law that requires the "duty to rescue" and the bus driver should not be prosecuted. If Korean lawmakers failed to adopt this part of the law then nobody in their right mind would get involved in any emergency at the risk of jail and fines. This contradicts Korean culture and values of helping each other when in need.
12:12 pm on January 13th, 2011 31
Tom #15, I would suspect that you would have a different reaction if the bus driver was defending a relative of yours. Calling a stupid law "stupid" whether it's a Korean, American, German, Guatemalan, Botswanan, or Sri Lankan is not "racist." I would hope that the citizens of the Republic of Korea would be outraged at the decision to prosecute the bus driver & would petition their representatives to make a change in the law. I say the bus driver ought to get a medal, especially since he is 50 years old.
4:37 pm on January 13th, 2011 32
#31 Concur.
8:56 pm on January 13th, 2011 33
I stopped a girl from getting sexually assaulted once.
I told her to quit clawing my face, get her clothes back on and get the hell out.
She called me "perversive".
I told her that was an awful big word for a twelve year-old to use.
9:35 pm on January 13th, 2011 34
CH AKA "Woody Allen."
10:12 am on January 14th, 2011 35
Yet another Korean judge proving that Common Law makes more common sense.
10:13 am on January 14th, 2011 36
"I would argue there is a precedence set in civil law that requires the “duty to rescue” and the bus driver should not be prosecuted. If Korean lawmakers failed to adopt this part of the law then nobody in their right mind would get involved in any emergency at the risk of jail and fines. This contradicts Korean culture and values of helping each other when in need."
Bingo!
10:17 am on January 14th, 2011 37
…one problem, though. Since he was the school's bus driver, he was in a position of authority and trust, and therefore he can be charged with assaulting the assailant(or at least he can according to Common Law). Damned if you do, damned if you don't.
12:48 am on January 15th, 2011 38
What was an escort doing on a school bus anyway?
12:59 am on January 15th, 2011 39
OINK. Only in Korea.
9:18 am on January 15th, 2011 40
Teadrinker 37, I thnk we learned that they have German civil law, not (English) common law.
11:55 am on January 15th, 2011 41
bikkis sexually harass korean women in seoul
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCoXcM-i6Ew&fe…
12:20 pm on January 15th, 2011 42
UTG #41, What would be great would be to send some black belt female Tae Kwon Do masters out & this type of harassment were to occur to them that the female black belts were to turn around & knock the SOB's out. But on the other hand, knowing Korea it would probably be the black belts who would be arrested. I read somewhere that a female Korean rape victim was charged with assault after fight back & injuring her attacker. I know firearms are illegal in Korea, I wonder if mace or pepper spray are illegal?
5:43 pm on January 15th, 2011 43
Tom,
Pepper spray is available in Korea, but it's illegal. Weird huh?
I bought several female university students pepper spray (with their parents' consent, of course) after a rash of sexual assaults occurred on their campus.
If they actually use it, in any situation, they will be punished by the prosecutors' office. They know this and their parents know this, but they think it's better than being raped.
10:11 pm on January 15th, 2011 44
"I wonder if mace or pepper spray are illegal?"
Who needs mace or pepper spray? Get a .38-ish gas gun… looks/works just like a real S&W revolver… legal with permission… shoots a jet of gas from a bullet-looking cartridge…
…probably more effective if combined with a .38-ish ball bearing in front of the gas cartridge.