Child Welfare Act violation (abandonment and neglect)
A mother with an intellectual disability was raising her two children alone after a divorce. She began staying out overnight to visit a boyfriend in another area, leaving the children to feed themselves from the fridge or ring her to have food delivered. A welfare centre worker noticed and reported it, prosecutors referred it as a child protection case rather than charging her, and she faced being separated from her children.
Mother with disabilityChildren left aloneChild neglectWelfare centre reportChild protection case
Protective disposition (보호처분)Criminal
Violation of the Child Welfare Act (child abandonment and neglect) and protective disposition
A crime in which a child's guardian abuses the child is called a 'child abuse crime.' One such crime, abandoning a child or neglecting the child by failing to provide basic protection, care, treatment, and education, including food, clothing, and shelter, is punishable by imprisonment for up to five years or a fine of up to 50,000,000 Korean won.
However, considering the special relationship between the victim and the offender in child abuse crimes, if the illegality is not significant, the case is referred as a child protection case instead of a criminal trial, and the offender receives a protective disposition rather than punishment.
Protective dispositions include restrictions on access, restrictions or suspension of parental authority or guardian authority, community service or attendance orders, probation, and medical treatment consignment.
Recently, I will introduce a case in which attorney Joo Youngjae handled a child protection case and brought about probation.
Facts
The offender (client) is a person with an intellectual disability and the mother of two victim children. After divorce, she was raising the victim children alone.
Starting around November 2020, the offender began to frequently stay out overnight, leaving only the victim children at home to meet her boyfriend who lives in another region. Whenever this happened, the victim children would eat food left in the refrigerator on their own or call the offender to have food delivered to fill their stomachs.
An employee of the administrative welfare center happened to become aware of the above child abandonment and neglect during a consultation with the offender and requested a police investigation. Subsequently, the prosecution determined that the illegality was not significant and referred the case as a child protection case instead of indictment.
Attorney Joo Youngjae's assistance
Attorney Joo Youngjae argued that although the offender deeply loves the victim children and is usually a affectionate mother, due to her intellectual disability, she did not recognize the illegality of staying out overnight while leaving the children alone, and thus committed the crime.
In addition, attorney Joo Youngjae submitted materials showing that the offender and the victim children miss each other and want to live together, and expressed the opinion that a disposition separating the offender from the victim children is unnecessary.
Court's decision
The court accepted the above arguments of attorney Joo Youngjae and issued only a protective disposition ordering the offender to receive probation for one year. As a result, the offender was able to live with the victim children again.
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