Teacher cleared on appeal after grabbing unruly child's arms to restrain her

An appeals court has acquitted a kindergarten teacher who was convicted of child abuse after grabbing a disruptive child's arms to restrain her.

The Fourth Criminal Division of Daejeon District Court, presided over by Chief Judge Gu Chang-mo, overturned a lower court ruling Wednesday and found Teacher A not guilty of violating the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Child Abuse Crimes — specifically the aggravated punishment provision for child abuse by workers at child facilities. The lower court had fined her 5 million won ($3,540).

"Teachers must be recognized as having considerable discretion in responding to situations that arise suddenly in an educational setting," the court said in its ruling. "If the intent required to constitute a criminal offense is not established within the scope of that discretion, the conduct cannot be subject to criminal punishment — and accordingly, the defendant's actions in this case are difficult to regard as constituting a crime."

Teacher A was indicted on charges stemming from a 2023 incident at a Sejong kindergarten in which she told a then-6-year-old girl, identified as B, "If you cry, you can't play on the playground. No matter how angry you are, you must not hit your friends or your teacher." When B continued crying and began flailing her arms, Teacher A grabbed both of the child's arms firmly, leaving bruises.

Teacher A said her actions did not constitute physical abuse, that she had no intent to abuse the child, and that even if the conduct were deemed physical abuse, it was justified as necessary to protect the child and other students.

The lower court, however, found her guilty and imposed the fine, ruling that "even if the situation called for appropriate discipline in response to the child's misconduct, it is difficult to regard the defendant's conduct as objectively justifiable childcare or disciplinary behavior by common social standards."

Teacher A also faced charges of striking the child and leaving a bruise on her cheek, but both the lower court and the appeals court found her not guilty on that count.

When the lower court handed down its guilty verdict on the abuse charge, the Sejong chapter of the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union and other teacher groups pushed back, saying the ruling effectively told teachers "not to intervene under any circumstances," and called for Teacher A's acquittal.