42-Year-Old CEO Acquitted After Impregnating 14-Year-Old Middle School Student, Citing 'Love'—Cho Hee-dae: 'Based on Leg

[Artaxerxes II]

https://www.news1.kr/society/court-prosecution/5252532

(Seoul = News1) Senior Reporter Park Tae-hoon = Supreme Court Chief Justice nominee Cho Hee-dae explained that his 2017 ruling, which acquitted a 40-year-old entertainment agency CEO who impregnated a middle school student 27 years younger than him, was made "to uphold the legal system."

During his confirmation hearing at the National Assembly on the afternoon of the 5th, Cho was questioned about a past ruling from his tenure as a Supreme Court justice. In 2017, he upheld the acquittal of a 42-year-old entertainment CEO accused of raping a 15-year-old middle school student.

Democratic Party lawmaker Jeon Yong-gi brought up the case, asking, "Can our society accept this?" He criticized the ruling that recognized the CEO's claim of being in a "romantic relationship" with the 15-year-old, stating, "I absolutely cannot agree with a ruling that acknowledges 'love' in such a case."

Jeon further questioned Cho, asking, "Isn't it the law's duty to prevent 'grooming crimes,' where perpetrators manipulate and control their victims psychologically?"

Cho responded, "Since no new evidence was presented in the retrial after the case was sent back for review, we had no choice but to rule not guilty. The decision was based on the principle of legal binding force, not a judgment on the merits of the case itself."

When Jeon criticized him, saying, "For a case with such significant societal repercussions, shouldn't the court have reviewed the substance of the case rather than merely following procedural rules?" Cho replied, "There is always a conflict between specific fairness and legal stability. If we start disregarding procedural rules when cases are sent back for retrial, the entire judicial system will collapse."

In essence, Cho argued that because the case had already been ruled not guilty in a previous Supreme Court decision and was sent back for retrial, the court had to maintain that ruling to preserve the legal system.

The case in question dates back to 2011.

At the time, 42-year-old entertainment agency CEO Cho was involved in multiple sexual encounters with a victim 27 years his junior. After the victim became pregnant and ran away from home, he brought her to live with him.

After giving birth, the middle school student reported Cho to the police in 2012, leading to his indictment on charges of violating the Act on the Protection of Children and Adolescents from Sexual Abuse (rape, etc.).

Cho denied the charges, claiming, "It was a consensual relationship, not rape." However, the first trial sentenced him to 12 years in prison, and the appellate court reduced the sentence to 9 years.

Cho appealed, and in November 2014, the Supreme Court overturned the guilty verdict and sent the case back to the Seoul High Court. The court cited evidence such as letters the victim sent to Cho while he was incarcerated, which included messages like "I love you," as well as frequent affectionate messages exchanged via smartphone messenger.

Following the Supreme Court’s reasoning, the Seoul High Court also ruled Cho not guilty. Prosecutors appealed the retrial decision, but on November 9, 2017, the Supreme Court’s second division, presided over by Justice Cho Hee-dae, finalized the acquittal.