"There is a possibility that the victim's memory has been distorted over time, and when there is doubt ... the defendant must be given the benefit of the doubt,"
"An acquittal can never nullify the truth or erase the pain I have endured,"
"I can no longer stand by and watch the systemic repetition of sexual violence in the cultural and artistic community."
"Despite today's verdict, I will speak the truth to the end with an even more resolute heart."
O Yeong-su, an 81-year-old Golden Globe winner, was acquitted on appeal on November 11 of a sexual-misconduct conviction stemming from an alleged 2017 incident in which an actress accused him of forcibly hugging and kissing her. A 2024 conviction had imposed an eight-month prison sentence suspended for two years, but O appealed. The appellate court noted the victim sought sexual-violence counseling in 2018, that O apologized directly, and that he completed sexual-violence classes; the court cited possible distortion of the victim's memory and gave the defendant the benefit of the doubt. The actress vowed to continue speaking out, and prosecutors retain the option to appeal.
Read at Vulture
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