The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a guilty sentence for the operator of a website that discloses the names of uncooperative parents refusing to pay child support.
The Supreme Court found Koo Bon-chang, 61, who runs the name-and-shame website Bad Fathers, guilty of naming and publicly sharing personal information, such as the name, facial picture, age, residence and workplace, of men and women accused by their former partners or spouses of refusing to pay child support.
The court upheld the second trial's decision and finalized its suspended ruling of a fine of 1 million won ($760) for Koo.
In 2018, Koo was sued for defamation by five Koreans -- three men and two women -- who were featured on the website because they did not pay child support to their former partners. They claimed that putting their pictures on the website in an effort to push them to pay the money was slander.
In the initial trial in January 2020, Koo won the case. In the ruling, the Suwon District Court pointed out that Koo had not profited from the website, which served the public good.
However, Koo was found guilty at a second trial in December 2021. In the ruling, the Suwon High Court said that his activities constituted illegal "private penalties." The court handed Koo a fine and suspended his sentence, taking into consideration the circumstances leading to the crime.
