The Ministry of Justice has decided not to prosecute a U.S. soldier for a scuffle in September.
U.S. Army Private John Murphy had been charged with beating former lawmaker Suh Kyung-won.
The ministry said, "Considering the fact that Mr. Suh's wounds were not serious, that he hit Murphy on the head first and that Murphy was detained forcibly by students, we decided not to press our rights to jurisdiction in the case."
But one civic group was outraged by the decision, insisting that the fault lay with Private Murphy despite the provocation.
"Though Koreans are much more interested in the U.S. Army's crimes recently, the Justice Ministry gave up jurisdiction over the case. That is a measure against national sentiment, and we will demonstrate on Friday," the group announced.
