Severe Disabled Person Who Caused Concussion by Pushing Social Worker... Court "Cannot Punish"

[Financial News] A severely autistic person with an IQ below 45 assaulted a social worker, causing a concussion, but the court ruled not guilty, stating there was no cognitive ability or control over actions at the time.
According to the legal community on the 7th, the Seoul Western District Court Criminal 7th Single (Judge Ma Seong-yeong) announced on the 5th that it had acquitted Mr. A (24) who was on trial for injury charges.
Mr. A was charged with hitting social worker Mr. B (45) with his palm, causing him to fall and suffer a concussion and bruises on his shoulder and knee, while Mr. B was working at a welfare center for the disabled in Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul, in April last year.
The welfare center's closed-circuit (CC) TV footage showed Mr. A sitting on a sofa and shaking his body for about 4 minutes before suddenly rushing at Mr. B. Until then, no conversation, eye contact, or conflict with the victim was confirmed.
According to the court, Mr. A was diagnosed with severe intellectual disability with an IQ below 45 and a social age of 3.6 years. He also had severe hearing impairment, and Eunpyeong-gu Office in Seoul had judged Mr. A to have a "severe disability requiring lifelong protection from others."
Mr. B argued that "Mr. A repeatedly showed a 'sorry' expression and apologized after hitting others," claiming that Mr. A had a certain level of cognitive ability. However, the court did not accept this.
The court stated, "Even if basic emotional expression or short-term reactions are possible, it is difficult to see this as the ability to distinguish objects or control actions," adding, "The defendant could not even state his name or address during the trial process."
Furthermore, "Article 10, Paragraph 1 of the Criminal Act stipulates that 'acts of those who cannot distinguish objects or make decisions due to mental disorders are not punishable,'" and concluded that "Mr. A was in a state of lacking responsibility at the time of the crime."
425_sama@fnnews.com Choi Seung-han Reporter