Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Treason |
Sentence: |
Death and Executed |
Years Imprisoned: |
1 |
Year Crime: |
1974 |
Year Convicted: |
1975 |
Year Cleared: |
2007 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
Republic of Korea (South Korea) |
County or Region of Crime: |
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City of Crime: |
Seoul |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated Posthumously after Execution |
Summary of Case: |
"Lee Su-byeong, Woo Hong-seon, Song Sang-jin, Seo Seo Do-won, Ha Jae-wan, Kim Yong-won, Doh Ye-jong, and Yeo Jeong-nam were eight co-defendants were wrongly convicted in 1975 of treason against South Korea for attempting to organize a revolutionary organization. Subjected to extreme torture tactics, all eight men confessed to belonging to the People’s Revolutionary Party and working with North Korea to create a communist Korea. Known as the “PRP” Eight, the men were sentence to death and executed in 1975 by hanging. After it became known that the PRP was a non-existent organization created out of thin air by South Korea's Central Intelligence Agency to provide a reason to dispose of people critical of government policies. In January 2007 all eight men were posthumously exonerated after a retrial. In August the families of the eight men were awarded $3.49 million each, plus 5% interest on the award for the 32 years from 1975 to 2007." |
Conviction Caused By: |
Tortured into falsely confessing to belonging to the non-existent People's Revolutionary Party. The police fabricated the existence of the PRP to have an excuse to silence government critics. |
Innocence Proved By: |
Exonerated of treason after a posthumous retrial in January 2007. |
Defendant Aided By: |
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Compensation Awarded: |
US$3.49 million plus 5% interest each year from 1975 to 2007. |
Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
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Age When Released: |
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Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
Asian |
Information Source 1: |
"Eight South Koreans Exonerated 32 Years After Being Executed For Treason — Relatives Awarded $67.4 Million, By Hans Sherrer, Justice Denied magazine, Issue 38 (Fall 2007), September 16, 2007" |
Information Location 1: |
http://justicedenied.org/wordpress/archives/56 |
Information Source 2: |
"South Korea Court Orders Government To Pay $28 Million To The Families Of Eight Men Wrongfully Executed, By Windsor Genova (staff writer), AHN (South Korea), August 21, 2007" |
Information Location 2: |
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7008268878 |
Information Source 3: |
"Families of eight wrongfully executed political prisoners awarded compensation, The Hankyoreh (Seoul), August 22, 2007" |
Information Location 3: |
http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/230608.html |
Information Source 4: |
"Families of eight wrongfully executed political prisoners awarded compensation, By Staff, The Hankyoreh, August 22, 2007" |
Information Location 4: |
http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/230608.html |
Information Source 5: |
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Information Location 5: |
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Book About Case: |
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Book Information: |
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Movie About Case: |
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Comments About Case: |
Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org