Entertainer Park Soo-hong's wife, Kim Da-ye, expressed joy at news of the abolition of the "relative exemption" system, which had exempted punishment for property crimes among relatives.
On the 30th, Kim Da-ye shared on her social media (SNS) an article stating that the relative exemption under the Criminal Act was abolished. Posting a conversation with artificial intelligence related to the system, she left the phrase "Soo-hong dad who changed the country," emphasizing that her husband Park Soo-hong's efforts led to the policy change.
The relative exemption is a special provision introduced into the Criminal Act in 1953 with the intent that the state would not intervene in property disputes within families. However, as abuse cases increased recently, the Constitutional Court in June last year issued a decision of constitutional nonconformity on the grounds that it excessively infringes on victims' rights.
According to the Ministry of Justice, on the 30th the National Assembly passed a Criminal Act amendment that unifies property crimes among relatives as offenses subject to complaint. The amendment deletes the provision for sentence exemption and converts such crimes into offenses subject to complaint, under which prosecution can be initiated only if the victim files a complaint. In addition, complaints are now allowed regarding a spouse's lineal ascendants, and the revised provisions apply retroactively to cases that occurred after the Constitutional Court's decision of constitutional nonconformity.
Park Soo-hong filed a complaint in 2021 accusing his older brother and sister-in-law of embezzlement, and has since experienced financial conflict within the family. During the trial, the father claimed, "I managed all the assets," and suspicions were raised that they were attempting to block punishment of the older brother and sister-in-law through the relative exemption provision.
Meanwhile, Park Soo-hong's older brother, who was indicted on charges of embezzling tens of billions of won, was taken into custody in court after being sentenced to three years and six months in prison at the appellate trial on the 19th. The sister-in-law, Lee, who was indicted together, was sentenced to one year and six months in prison, suspended for two years, and both have now filed appeals.