Why You Need a Sexual Assault Defense Attorney

Sexual Assault

Sexual assault is one form of sexual violence.

Sexual violence includes not only rape and indecent assault but also verbal sexual harassment, obscene messages, hidden-camera offenses, and any other physical·psychological violence inflicted against another person's will.

Among these, sexual assault refers to rape and attempted rape.

Rape means forcibly having sexual intercourse with a person through assault or intimidation.

Punishment for Sexual Assault

The punishment for sexual assault prescribed by the Korean Criminal Act is as follows.

Article 297 of the Korean Criminal Act (Rape) A person who rapes another by means of assault or intimidation shall be punished by fixed-term imprisonment of at least 3 years.

Article 297-2 (Quasi-Rape) A person who, by means of assault or intimidation, inserts the genitals into the inside of another person's body such as the mouth, anus, etc. (excluding the genitals), or inserts part of the body such as a finger into the genitals, anus (excluding the genitals), or an instrument, shall be punished by fixed-term imprisonment of at least 2 years.

Article 301 of the Korean Criminal Act (Bodily Injury Resulting from Rape, etc.) Where a person who commits any of the crimes under Articles 297, 297-2 and 298 through 300 of the Korean Criminal Act inflicts bodily injury on or causes bodily injury to another person, that person shall be punished by life imprisonment or fixed-term imprisonment of at least 5 years.

Responding to a Sexual Assault Case

If you have been sexually assaulted, it is advisable to follow the steps below.

Go to an OB-GYN clinic as soon as possible without washing your body.
If you have bruises or wounds on your body, take photographs of them.
Find someone who can support and help you.
Do not stay alone; move to a safe place such as a family member's or friend's home.
To preserve evidence, go to a hospital (the Sunflower Center / 해바라기센터) as soon as possible without washing your body.
You can seek help from a counseling agency that specializes in sexual violence.
Calm your emotions and decide whether to file a criminal complaint after discussing it together with the counseling center.

If you have been wrongfully indicted on charges of sexual assault, it is advisable to follow the steps below.

If you are not in fact being falsely accused, it is better to prepare a different response strategy.

Rather than filing a counter-complaint, first aim to shed your status as a suspect.
You need to gather favorable circumstances.
Whether to file a cross-complaint for false accusation should be considered in light of the situation.

Examples of favorable circumstances here include holding hands when entering the lodging, having a meal together the next day, or the tone of the subsequent KakaoTalk messages being positive.

While such details do not play a decisive role, the more favorable circumstances there are, the higher the likelihood of shedding your status as a suspect.

The Procedure of a Sexual Assault Case

Police investigation
Prosecution investigation
Court

Police Investigation

Securing custody of the suspect
Investigation of the victim, the offender, and the evidentiary circumstances
Decision on whether to refer the case to the prosecution

At this stage, accurately understanding the alleged facts is important.

This is the most important stage, because the statements made here have a major impact all the way through the subsequent prosecution investigation and the court proceedings.

Prosecution Investigation

Investigation of the suspect
Request for an arrest warrant
Whether to indict

It is highly disadvantageous if the statements made during the police investigation lose their consistency.

Accurately understanding one's statements is therefore important.

If the suspect contacts the victim directly during this process, it is regarded as secondary harm.

If you want a suspended indictment, you need to reach a settlement with the victim at this stage

A suspended indictment leaves no criminal record

Court

Trial hearing
Examination of the defendant
Closing argument
Sentencing

The sentence imposed at the first instance heavily influences the second instance.

At this stage, the attorney's competence is crucial.

Why You Need an Attorney Who Specializes in Sexual Assault Cases

In sexual assault cases, the victim and the offender are usually the only two people present, so clear evidence is hard to come by.

As a result, the victim's statement carries great weight.

For a sexual assault victim, the consistency and specificity of their statement are important.

When the evidence is not mutually clear, the victim's statement is used as the strongest piece of evidence.

For a sexual assault suspect who has been wrongfully indicted, circumstantial evidence is important.

However, because such circumstantial evidence is very difficult for an ordinary person to assess, expert help is needed.

In addition, the more specific and detailed the account is compared to the other party's statement, the higher its credibility.

In this case, however, speaking in too much detail can work against you, so expert help is also needed here, .

The level of punishment for sex crimes is rising day by day. A suspect can be said to be starting an uphill battle from the very beginning.

For this reason, expert help is needed even more than it is for a victim.

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