What Is a Juvenile Offender Under 14
A juvenile offender under 14 (chokbeop sonyeon) is a minor aged 10 or older but under 14 who has committed an act that violates the penal laws. Article 9 of the Korean Criminal Act provides that the act of a person who is not yet 14 years old shall not be punished, so a juvenile offender under 14 is not subject to criminal punishment. Instead, they receive a protective disposition from the juvenile division of the family court under the Juvenile Act.
Sorted by age, a minor under 10 is treated as a delinquent below the age of responsibility and receives neither criminal punishment nor a protective disposition; a minor aged 10 or older but under 14 is a juvenile offender under 14 who is subject to a protective disposition; and a minor aged 14 or older but under 19 is a juvenile delinquent who may face both criminal punishment and a protective disposition.
Types of Protective Disposition
Article 32 of the Juvenile Act sets out protective dispositions from No. 1 to No. 10. These are: placement in the care of a guardian (No. 1), an order to attend a course (No. 2), a community service order (No. 3), short-term and long-term probation (No. 4 and No. 5), placement in a child welfare facility or the like (No. 6), placement in a hospital or sanatorium (No. 7), commitment to a juvenile reformatory for up to one month (No. 8), short-term commitment to a juvenile reformatory (No. 9, up to six months), and long-term commitment to a juvenile reformatory (No. 10, up to two years).
Depending on the severity of the case and the minor's environment, several dispositions may be combined. The most severe disposition, No. 10, entails confinement in a juvenile reformatory for up to two years and effectively amounts to detention.
A Protective Disposition Is Not a Criminal Record
Because a protective disposition is not a criminal punishment, it does not leave a criminal record, and Article 32(6) of the Juvenile Act expressly states that a protective disposition shall have no effect whatsoever on the minor's future status. That said, records from the investigation stage may remain for a certain period, and if the same type of delinquency is repeated, it may be taken into account as unfavorable material in later proceedings.
What Victims Need to Know
Even if the offender is a juvenile offender under 14 and therefore cannot be criminally punished, a civil claim for damages is still possible. As a general rule, when a minor without the capacity for responsibility commits an act, the parents who bear the duty of supervision under civil law are liable for damages, so medical expenses, compensation for emotional distress, and the like can be claimed from the parents. If the matter involves school violence, the proceedings before the School Violence Countermeasures Deliberation Committee are conducted separately.
What Guardians Need to Know
When a child is referred to the juvenile division as a juvenile offender under 14, the guardian also takes part in the investigation and hearing proceedings. Because juvenile cases aim at rehabilitation rather than punishment, remorse over the circumstances of the delinquency, settlement with the victim and recovery of the harm, and efforts to improve the environment to prevent recurrence have a major impact on the severity of the disposition. To avoid a serious disposition such as commitment to a juvenile reformatory, systematic preparation at the hearing stage is necessary.
Discussion on Lowering the Age of a Juvenile Offender Under 14
In response to increasingly violent juvenile crime, discussions continue over amending the law to lower the upper age limit for a juvenile offender under 14 to below 13. While this has not yet been put into effect, given the high level of public interest, the system surrounding juvenile cases remains subject to change going forward.
Why You Need the Help of a Criminal Defense Attorney
Juvenile cases follow procedures entirely different from ordinary criminal cases, and even the same act can lead to different procedures and outcomes depending on age. If you are the guardian of an offending minor, you need preparation aimed at reducing the severity of the protective disposition; if you are a victim, you need a response that spans civil compensation and school proceedings. For these reasons, it is important to obtain the help of a criminal defense attorney experienced in juvenile cases.
