South Korean Woman Acquitted 61 Years After Biting Rapist’s Tongue in Act of Self-Defense

At the original trial in 1965, the court found Choi's actions had 'exceeded the reasonable bounds of legally permissible self-defense'

A South Korean woman who was convicted more than six decades ago for biting off part of her rapist’s tongue during an assault has finally been acquitted after a court overturned her conviction, recognizing her actions as justifiable self-defense.

Choi Mal-ja, now 79, was sentenced in 1965 to 10 months in prison, suspended for two years, after she bit off 1.5 cm (0.59 in) of her attacker’s tongue while trying to escape when she was just 18 years old.

Her attacker, a 21-year-old man identified only as Roh, ambushed her in the southern town of Gimhae in 1964. He violently pinned her to the ground, forced his tongue into her mouth, and blocked her nose to stop her from breathing. In the aftermath, Roh received only six months suspended for two years, on charges of trespassing and intimidation—not attempted rape.

Choi Mal-ja was sentenced to 10 months in prison suspended for two years for grievous bodily harm, after taking off 1.5 cm (0.59in) of her attacker's tongue in an attempt to escape when she was 18-years-old

The ruling, which shocked South Korea at the time, branded Choi as a criminal rather than a victim. At her original trial, the court claimed her actions had “exceeded the reasonable bounds of legally permissible self-defense.” Police and judges also cast doubt on her testimony, with one even suggesting she should marry her attacker.

Choi spent six months in jail during the investigation before her suspended sentence. Meanwhile, Roh repeatedly harassed her, demanding compensation and even breaking into her home with a kitchen knife. Despite this, her case was cited in law textbooks as an example of courts rejecting self-defense in sexual violence cases.

Both the police, and later the judge, distrusted her testimony, asking Choi in the court whether she had any affection for the man and suggesting she should marry him

Decades later, inspired by the #MeToo movement in South Korea, Choi sought to clear her name. In 2018, she reached out to the Women’s Hotline and began building her case. Her 2020 retrial petition was initially rejected, but in December 2024, the Supreme Court ordered a retrial.

At the first hearing in July, prosecutors issued a rare apology and urged the court to quash her conviction. On Wednesday, a Busan district court acquitted Choi, declaring her actions in 1964 an “attempt to escape an unjust infringement on her bodily integrity and sexual self-determination.”

She challenged the court's ruling after being inspired by the country's #MeToo movement

Speaking after the historic ruling, Choi said she had fought not only for herself but also for other victims of sexual violence. “Sixty-one years ago, in a situation where I could understand nothing, the victim became the perpetrator and my fate was sealed as a criminal,” she said. “For the victims who shared the same fate as mine, I wanted to be a source of hope.”

Supporters gathered outside the courthouse with placards reading, “Choi Mal-ja did it!” and “Choi Mal-ja succeeded.” Her lawyer, Kim Soo-jung, confirmed that Choi plans to file a civil lawsuit against the state seeking compensation for the decades of injustice she endured.