Ruling: Resisting enforcement begun without prior consent is not obstruction of official duties

Who this helps

This may help people curious about how courts treat an immigration raid on a workplace that began without the site manager's prior consent. It covers one criminal case involving an undocumented factory worker.

Case overview

Court

Uijeongbu District Court

Posted on original board

May 9, 2008 (Fri)

Topic

Criminal Cases

Original title (Korean)

출입국관리공무원이 불법체류자 단속을 위하여 제3자의 주거나 사업장 등을 검사하고자 하는 경우에는 주거권자나 관리자의…

Immigration officials carried out enforcement at a factory against the defendant, an undocumented resident. The defendant threatened them with a work knife and stabbed the thigh of an official who rushed in to subdue him, causing a wound that required about 2 weeks of treatment. The defendant was charged with injury by group or dangerous weapon, etc., and aggravated obstruction of official duties.

Is resisting an immigration raid a crime if officers entered the workplace without prior consent?

Immigration officers began a raid at a factory without the factory manager's prior consent. The record shows no urgent circumstance that made consent impossible to obtain. The court therefore held that the raid began unlawfully, so the charge of special obstruction of official duties was not proven. The injury charge was treated separately: the defendant stabbed an officer's thigh with a work knife, and the court found him guilty.

How the court ruled

The court found the defendant guilty of the injury charge and sentenced him to 1 year 6 months in prison, suspended for 3 years. The officials entered the workplace and began enforcement without the factory manager's prior consent, and there was no urgent circumstance that made consent impossible to obtain. The court therefore held that the enforcement began unlawfully. As a result, it found no proof of the crime for the aggravated obstruction charge, which presupposes that the performance of official duties was lawful.

What to check in a similar situation

Information about when officers need consent to inspect a workplace or home during an immigration raid can be checked with immigration and foreign nationals offices. The case record and the full judgment can be checked with the court.

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Terms explained

Obstruction of official duties

A crime of interfering with a public official who is carrying out lawful work. It requires that the official's work was lawful.

Prior consent

Permission given in advance by the person who holds the right to live in or manage a place. Immigration officers need it to inspect a third party's home or workplace in a raid, unless an urgent situation prevents it.

Suspended sentence

A prison term the court imposes but does not carry out right away. It is not carried out if the person stays out of trouble during the set period.

More rulings on this topic

• Ruling sentencing a defendant to 1 year in prison for illegal entry, illegal stay and aiding another person's illegal entry · Busan District Court
• Students' submission of bank balance certificate found to be an application by improper means · Seoul Eastern District Court
• Court upholds departure order for foreign national fined for drunk driving · Daegu District Court

See all 28 rulings on Criminal Cases →

Frequently asked questions

Who was the defendant in this case?

The defendant was a factory worker from Bangladesh who was staying without legal status. The raid took place at the factory where he worked.

How did the court rule?

The court found the defendant guilty of the injury and sentenced him to one year and six months in prison, suspended for three years. It found the special obstruction charge unproven because the raid began without the manager's prior consent and without an urgent circumstance.

Does this result apply to every similar case?

No. It is the court's decision in this one case and does not apply as is to other cases.