Kim Rahn is the managing editor of The Korea Times. Since joining the company in 2003, she has covered various beats including the presidential office, Seoul city government, the Bank of Korea and the tourism industry. In 2014, she won the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) award for her coverage of the ordeals of migrant women in Korea.
Ex-chief Jeju prosecutor unlikely to practice law
By Kim Rahn
Kim Soo-chang
By Kim Rahn
The former chief Jeju prosecutor, who quit after admitting to performing acts of lewd behavior in public last year, may be unable to register as a lawyer for the time being because a regional bar association is refusing to accept him as a member.
Officials of the Seoul Bar Association said Tuesday that Kim Soo-chang, former head of the Jeju District Prosecutors’ Office, recently applied for registration and a meeting of the association’s review committee was held.
A person with a lawyer’s license cannot work at a law firm or open his or her own office if a regional bar association refuses the person’s registration.
“The committee hasn’t made a final decision yet, but many members think it is too early for him to resume his career because it has been only seven months since the incident,” said an association official.
He said people committing such acts are usually subject to fines or heavier penalties, but the prosecution suspended indictment on condition that Kim undergo psychiatric treatment.
“It is unlikely that he was recovered in two to three months. We think he needs more time for self-restraint, and to keep visiting hospitals,” he said.
The committee asked Kim to submit more documents including doctors’ opinions. After receiving the necessary documents, it will hold another meeting to make a final decision. But many committee members have already expressed opinions that Kim will need more time before being seriously considered for registration.
Kim allegedly masturbated in public near his residence in Jeju in August. Through surveillance camera recordings, police confirmed that Kim committed sexual misconduct five times. Following the police investigation, Kim quit the chief prosecutor position.