Cha Ye-ryeon, school violence allegations spread like wildfire… Lawyer: “Criminal prosecution is virtually impossible”

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Amid the ongoing controversy surrounding actress Cha Ye-ryeon’s alleged involvement in school violence, a lawyer pointed out that criminal prosecution for an incident from 25 years ago is “virtually impossible.”

On the 11th, a video addressing legal issues related to the allegations of school violence against Cha Ye-ryeon was released on the YouTube channel “New Lawyers.”

On this day, lawyer Kim Soo-yeol explained that specificity can be recognized even if real names are not directly mentioned in the exposé post. Lawyer Kim stated, “Even if real names are not mentioned, specificity is recognized if only certain people can identify the individual,” adding, “One must examine whether there are clues that allow inference to a specific person.”

Regarding the suspension of access to the original exposé post, he emphasized that temporary measures and a determination of falsity are separate matters. He stated, “The fact that a post has been subject to temporary measures does not mean it has been determined to be false,” explaining, “Access was temporarily restricted because a dispute over rights infringement between the parties is anticipated.” He added, “It is also unclear who made the request.” Cha Ye-ryeon’s original school violence exposé post had its access restricted on the 2nd under temporary measures pursuant to Article 44-2 of the Information and Communications Network Act.

Previously, on the 29th of last month, a post was uploaded to an online community claiming that a female actress born in 1985 subjected the author to school violence during middle school. The author claimed to have been subjected to physical assault and continuous bullying, and some netizens identified Cha Ye-ryeon based on her birth year and alma mater. In response, Cha Ye-ryeon’s agency stated that the allegations were “groundless” and announced it would take strong action against the spread of false information and personal attacks.

Lawyer Kim also addressed the possibility of criminal prosecution regarding past school violence allegations. He explained, “If the accuser seeks to hold Cha Ye-ryeon accountable for school violence they experienced 25 years ago, it is difficult because it happened so long ago,” adding, “The statutes of limitations for assault and injury are five and seven years, respectively, and have already expired.”

He further added, “Even if the statute of limitations had not expired, the perpetrator may have been under 14 years old at the time of the incident,” stating, “Even if the events actually occurred, criminal prosecution is virtually impossible.”

However, he emphasized that the possibility of criminal prosecution for school violence and liability for defamation against the accuser are separate issues. Lawyer Kim stated, “Whether school violence can be punished and whether it automatically becomes a false statement when Ms. Cha Ye-ryeon files a defamation lawsuit against the accuser are different matters,” adding, “One must argue that the statements are not false to defend oneself.”

He viewed securing objective materials as important for this purpose. Lawyer Kim stated, “The best approach is to look for statements from classmates, diaries from the time of being bullied, records of complaints made to those around them, and medical records,” emphasizing the importance of materials that can substantiate the facts of the victimization at the time.

Regarding the situation where additional exposés and rebuttals continue online, he cautioned against hasty judgments. Referring to the phenomenon of various claims spreading in succession as an analogy to the “broken windows theory,” he stated, “We cannot know what is true. We must not hastily condemn. The arrows should not be directed even at family members.”

Meanwhile, despite Cha Ye-ryeon’s side completely denying the school violence allegations, the aftermath of the controversy continues. Recently, attention has focused on the disappearance of group purchase links for kimchi stew and aprons that were previously operated in Cha Ye-ryeon’s SNS profile. In this regard, her agency explained, “The links were removed because the group purchase sales schedule ended.”

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.View Original