LE SSERAFIM's Agency And Kim Garam's Former School Respond To New Alleged Evidence Of School Violence

Both LE SSERAFIM’s agency and Kim Garam’s former school have issued brief responses to what is alleged to be a new piece of evidence that she perpetrated school violence.

On May 16, a photo of a document surfaced on online communities that appeared to be an official record from a school violence committee meeting. The document, which is dated 2018 and titled “Notice of School Violence Committee Results,” lists the name “Kim Garam from Year 1, Class 3” as the perpetrator in the incident.

The document begins, “We are informing you of the action that we will be taking in accordance with Articles 16 and 17 of the Act on the Prevention of and Countermeasures Against Violence in Schools.”

Article 16 of the Act on the Prevention of and Countermeasures Against Violence in Schools deals with “Protection of Victim Students,” with the law stating that if a school violence committee deems it necessary, it may request that the school take measures such as providing temporary protection, treatment, psychological counseling, a change of class, and/or any other measures necessary for the protection of the victim.

Article 17 of the law deals with “Countermeasures Against Aggressor Students,” stating that the school violence committee will request that the school take one or more of the following measures against a perpetrator of school violence: an order to give a written apology, a restraining order prohibiting contact with the victim, service to the school, service to society, a special educational course or psychological treatment, suspension, a change of class, transfer to another school, or expulsion.

On the same day that the document began spreading online, someone posted a photo allegedly of Kim Garam and her classmates from middle school wearing T-shirts with the number “3” on them and wrote, “It’s true that Kim Garam was in Year 1, Class 3 at Kyeongin Middle School. This is a photo from a Kyeongin Middle School retreat.”

Later that day, a spokesperson for HYBE officially responded to the alleged evidence by telling News1, “Nothing has changed from our agency’s previous statement [on the matter].” They added, “We have begun to take legal action, and the details will be sorted out during the legal process.”

Last month, when multiple allegations that Kim Garam had committed school violence began swirling on various online communities, HYBE released an official statement denying the allegations and claiming that Kim Garam had been a victim of school bullying herself. The agency also announced their plans to take legal action against those making the claims about Kim Garam.

Meanwhile, when Korean newspaper Money Today contacted Kim Garam’s former middle school to ask about the alleged evidence, the school replied, “We cannot give a response.”

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