| Judge gives Kim 44 months in prison
Corvallis Gazette Times, OR - 2 hours ago ... affiliation. The Kims belonged to Jehovah’s Witnesses, which they said prohibits members from mingling socially with non-members. ... |
| Judge gives Kim 44 months in prison By GWYNETH GIBBY Gazette-Times reporter |
Sung Koo Kim, the 32-year-old Tigard man who stole women’s underwear from Oregon State University residences, was sentenced Wednesday in a Benton County Circuit Court. Circuit Court Judge Janet Holcomb sentenced Kim to 31 months in prison for one count of first-degree burglary and 13 months for a second-degree burglary count. The charges stem from Kim’s theft of underwear and other personal items during April and May 2004.The Benton County sentence is part of a plea agreement with four Oregon counties, including Washington, Yamhill and Multnomah. The total sentence Kim will serve will be 11 years and three months. He is not eligible for alternative treatment programs.
Kim first gained notoriety when he was named a “person of interest” in the disappearance of Brooke Wilberger. Later, he was dropped from that list, and investigators subsequently arrested Joel Courtney in New Mexico, accusing him of killing the Veneta college student.
Joo and Dong Kim, Kim’s parents, were present at Wednesday’s hearing. Joo said her son is mentally ill and having a difficult time in prison.
“He says most of the time he stays in his cell with a cellmate who is also mentally ill,” Joo said. “He’s getting medication, but he needs expert mental-health care as soon as possible.”
Dr. Paul K. Leung, Kim’s psychiatrist, has diagnosed him with schizoaffective disorder.
Symptoms of this disorder “look like a mixture of two kinds of major mental illnesses,” depression and schizophrenia, according to the National Mental Health Association. This combination is difficult to diagnose and difficult to treat.
“I could see changing behavior,” Joo said about her son during his teen years. He was an excellent student but he became withdrawn and less affectionate. Still, she thought it was just growing pains.
“I was worried and puzzled,” she said, “but never thought of mental illness.”
Another factor in Kim’s mental state may have been the family’s religious affiliation. The Kims belonged to Jehovah’s Witnesses, which they said prohibits members from mingling socially with non-members. Those rules increased Kim’s isolation from potential friends and from his fellow students at school. He became afraid of people.
The Kims maintain their son is no danger to anyone and has never been violent.
Benton County Deputy District Attorney John Haroldson doesn’t agree.
In a motion to keep Kim in custody without bail, prosecutors said Kim targeted the OSU women’s swim team and labeled underwear and personal hygiene items with the names of the women from whom they were stolen. He also photographed himself wearing some of the underwear.
That behavior, in combination with thousands of violent pornographic images downloaded onto Kim’s computer, was cited by prosecutors as evidence of his violent obsession.
In one document on Kim’s computer, “we see the defendant making a list of horrific torture steps that lead to murder,” according to court documents, “followed by a list of supplies to bring along to complete the tasks.”
The defense of mental illness was not brought forward by any of Kim’s attorneys. Nor was it introduced as a mitigating factor in his sentencing, according to Haroldson.
At the sentencing Wednesday, Kim quietly apologized for his actions.
With Wednesday’s action, the sentencing of Kim is now concluded.
Another factor in Kim’s mental state may have been the family’s religious affiliation. The Kims belonged to Jehovah’s Witnesses, which they said prohibits members from mingling socially with non-members. Those rules increased Kim’s isolation from potential friends and from his fellow students at school. He became afraid of people .
This is true and the same destructive dynamic was done to me except i didn't have Kim's other challenges & variables instead i just turned into a normal apostate guerrilla-Danny Haszard Bangor Maine
