If you have been asked by the police to appear for questioning in an assault case, the first thing to do is to organize what happened that day in chronological order and gather materials to back it up. If the other party hit you too, it becomes a case of mutual assault, but if what you did was resistance to escape a one-sided attack, you may avoid punishment on the grounds of self-defense or a justifiable act. That argument, however, is hard to get accepted if it is made only verbally in the interrogation room; it must be presented coherently from your very first statement, supported by objective materials such as video footage and medical certificates.
Most assault cases break out without warning, at a drinking session, in a parking dispute, over noise between floors, or in a quarrel on the street. That is why many people are at a loss as to what to prepare once they receive the phone call asking them to appear. Especially where punches were exchanged, the statements conflict over who laid hands on whom first, and it is common for both sides to become at once suspect and victim. This column looks in turn at how police questioning in an assault case proceeds, when self-defense is recognized in a mutual fight, and what you should do before questioning.
1. What Crimes Are Assault Cases Handled As?
A. Simple assault and bodily injury carry different weight
Under Article 260(1) of the Criminal Act, a person who uses violence against the body of another is punished by imprisonment for not more than two years, a fine not exceeding 5 million won, misdemeanor imprisonment, or a minor fine. Violence here broadly refers to the exercise of physical force against the body, including not only hitting but also pushing and grabbing someone by the collar. If the other person was injured as a result, however, it becomes the crime of bodily injury under Article 257(1) of the Criminal Act, and the statutory punishment rises sharply to imprisonment for not more than seven years, suspension of qualifications for not more than ten years, or a fine not exceeding 10 million won. This is why the weight of a case depends on whether the other party has submitted a medical certificate.
B. Simple assault is not punished if the victim does not want it
Article 260(3) of the Criminal Act provides that simple assault is a crime for which no prosecution may be instituted against the expressed will of the victim. This means that if the victim states that he or she does not wish the offender to be punished, the matter does not lead to criminal punishment. By contrast, there is no such provision for bodily injury, so the case itself goes on even if a settlement is reached, and the settlement is merely taken into account as a favorable circumstance in sentencing. That is why, even in the same dispute, whether there was an injury and whether that injury was caused by the assault become important issues from the early stage of the investigation.
2. How Police Questioning for Assault Proceeds
A. The request to appear and the day of questioning
Under Article 200 of the Criminal Procedure Act, a judicial police officer may, when necessary for an investigation, request a suspect to appear and hear his or her statement. Usually the investigator in charge sets the date of appearance by phone or text message, and if you have a reason, you may ask for the date to be adjusted. Before the questioning begins, the judicial police officer must inform you, under Article 244-3 of the Criminal Procedure Act, that you may refuse to make statements, that you will suffer no disadvantage for not making statements, that what you say may be used as evidence of guilt in court, and that you may receive the assistance of defense counsel.
B. Defense counsel may enter the interrogation room with you
Article 243-2 of the Criminal Procedure Act provides that, upon the request of the suspect or a family member, among others, the judicial police officer shall allow defense counsel to participate in the interrogation unless there is a justifiable reason not to. Participating counsel may state an opinion after the interrogation ends and may object to improper methods of questioning even during the interrogation. In a case such as mutual assault, where a single expression can turn attack into defense and vice versa, this right of participation makes a real difference.
C. After the questioning ends
Under Article 245-5 of the Criminal Procedure Act, the judicial police officer refers the case to the public prosecutor if he or she finds that there is suspicion of a crime, and otherwise sends the records to the public prosecutor together with a document stating the reasons. This is what is called a decision of non-referral. A complainant or other person who receives notice of non-referral may, under Article 245-7 of the same Act, file an objection with the head of the office to which the judicial police officer belongs within three months from the date of receiving the notice, and once an objection is filed, the case is referred to the public prosecutor. A victim who feels the case ended unfairly even after being hit should not miss this period.
3. When Is Self-Defense Recognized in Mutual Assault?
A. A fight, in principle, makes self-defense difficult
Article 21(1) of the Criminal Act provides that an act done to defend one's own or another's legal interests against a present unjust infringement is not punishable if there is a reasonable ground. But this provision is rarely applied where the parties fought each other. As attack and defense alternate in succession, defense itself becomes attack. This is also why investigative agencies initially bundle cases in which both sides struck each other and handle them as mutual assault.
B. The court's judgment
That does not mean, however, that everyone who used their hands is punished. The Supreme Court looks not at outward appearance but at who actually attacked and who was trying to get away.
Supreme Court Decision 2009Do12958, February 11, 2010Even where the parties outwardly appear to be fighting each other, if in reality one side unilaterally launched an unlawful attack and the other side used physical force as a means of resistance to escape it, the act is justified unless it is evaluated as a new, active attack.
In that case, several people forced their way into a home and beat one person together, and the person being beaten flailed his arms and struggled to get free, injuring them. The court regarded this as a defensive act that was reasonable by social standards, and the acquittal was upheld.
C. What should you show during questioning?
Turning the standard in this precedent around reveals what needs to be made clear during questioning: who used physical force first, whether what you did was no more than shaking off an arm that had grabbed you or pushing the other person away, and whether you chased and hit the other person even after he or she had backed off. If you kept hitting after the other person had stopped attacking, from that point on it may be evaluated as a new attack. A claim that you were defending yourself gains force only when you explain this sequence in chronological order and back it up with video footage or witnesses.
4. What to Prepare Before Questioning
A. If you are appearing as a suspect
First, write down what happened that day minute by minute. Note where it happened, who started it, what was said, and who first laid hands on whom, and mark any parts you remember only vaguely as vague. If you fill in what you cannot remember with guesses, it will later conflict with the video footage and the credibility of your entire statement will collapse. Footage from nearby shops, buildings, and vehicle dashboard cameras is erased over time, so you should ask the police to secure it or ask the owners directly to preserve it. If you were hit too, go to a hospital right away to get a diagnosis and take photographs of your injuries. If you merely say "I was hit too" without such materials, it will be recorded only as one side's statement in a mutual assault.
B. If you are giving a statement as a victim
The same principle applies to victims. Organize and submit medical certificates, photographs of injuries, video footage, and witnesses' contact information, and bearing in mind the possibility that the other party may file a counter-complaint, it is better not to hide any part in which you used your hands but to explain how it happened as well. In a case of simple assault, whether the offender is punished depends on the victim's wishes, so you may receive a settlement offer. Once you have stated that you do not wish the offender to be punished, it is difficult to take it back, so it is safer to do so only after medical expenses and damages have actually been settled.
C. In a settlement, timing and wording matter
In mutual assault cases, the parties often exchange settlement agreements stating that neither wishes the other to be punished. In doing so, the agreement should clearly state whether civil claims are also waived and when and how medical expenses will be paid, so that no new dispute arises later. You should also remember that if you have been booked for bodily injury, a settlement alone will not end the case.
5. Closing
An assault happens in a matter of seconds, but its outcome can turn greatly on a single first statement. If you walk into the interrogation room angry and only blame the other party, or conversely, sign the sentences the investigator has written up just because you want to get it over with quickly, it is not easy to set the record straight. As the precedent recognizing self-defense shows, the court looks into who actually attacked. Leaving the material for that judgment is ultimately up to the parties themselves, and organizing what happened and securing evidence before facing questioning is the surest way to prevent an unjust outcome.
(Shin Dong-woo, Managing Partner, DAEON Law Firm)
This column provides general legal information based on Korean statutes and court decisions as of 2026. 11. 1.. It is not legal advice on any individual case.
2026. 11. 1. · By Attorney Dongwoo Shin
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