A suspended indictment does not mean ‘it never happened’

‘I received a suspended indictment. So I don't have a criminal record now, right?’ This is a question we often hear on the day the notice of the decision arrives.

It is half right and half wrong. Since you were not tried, you do not have a record of being sentenced. But the case does not become something that never happened.

It is a decision in which the charge is accepted

A suspended indictment (기소유예) is not a finding that there is no charge. It is a decision that, although the crime is recognized, the case will not be sent to trial this time in light of circumstances such as age and environment and what happened after the offense. Even among decisions not to indict, it differs in nature from ‘no charge’ (혐의없음) or ‘not a crime’ (죄가안됨).

It is a decision often made where a settlement has been reached with the victim, or where it is a first offense and the harm is not serious. In cases where the charge is admitted, it is also often the outcome that defense counsel's written opinion aims for.

So for someone who disputed the charge to the end, a suspended indictment may not be an entirely welcome outcome. There is a way to challenge a suspended indictment received unjustly, but it is narrow and has a fixed deadline, so if you intend to challenge it, you need to seek advice right after receiving the notice. Whether to accept or challenge it is decided by looking at the reasons for the decision together with the record so far.

The record remains for a certain period

Records of having been investigated are kept as investigation history data. A suspended indictment received as an adult is kept for five or ten years from the date of the decision, depending on the statutory penalty for the offense (Article 8-2(2) of the Act on the Lapse of Criminal Sentences). If you were a juvenile at the time of the decision, it is three years (paragraph (3) of the same Article).

This data is kept separately from criminal history data, what is commonly called a criminal record. Even so, if you are investigated again for the same kind of conduct, investigators will check the earlier suspended indictment. The fact that a person who was once shown leniency repeated the same wrongdoing weighs heavily in the second decision. The first suspended indictment, in effect, becomes an unfavorable factor in the second case.

Overseas visa applications and some hiring processes ask about criminal records or investigation history. What must be disclosed, and to what extent, depends on the standards of that country or organization, so it is safer to check separately before submitting documents.

Homework left after the decision

Sometimes a suspended indictment comes with conditions, such as completing education or taking part in a counseling program. If you received such conditions, finish them within the deadline you were given. If money you agreed to pay in installments as part of a settlement is still outstanding, keep that promise to the end as well. If you break it and the victim raises the matter again, things get complicated.

Depending on your occupation, such as public servants or certain licensed professions, even a suspended indictment can be linked to disciplinary action or licensing issues. If this applies to you, it is a good idea to check separately whether you must report it to your organization after receiving the decision, and what procedures follow.

A suspended indictment means you have been given another chance. You may put the decision deep in a drawer, but the years after it will show how you used that chance.