Top court demands review of ruling against serviceman's injury

SEOUL, July 11 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's top court said Monday it has sent back for reconsideration a lower court's ruling that rejected a former serviceman's bid to gain national meritorious person status for suffering a broken tooth during his years in the riot police.
The Supreme Court said it sent back the case to the Seoul High Court, as it was difficult to accept the lower court's decision that the degree of injury did not meet the level prescribed by law. The 35-year-old former serviceman, identified only by his last name Go, applied in 2008 for the status of national meritorious person after a senior colleague in the riot police allegedly punched him in the face and broke his tooth in 1997.
At least two years of military service is compulsory for all able-bodied South Korean men but they can opt to join the riot police rather than the regular military.
At the time, the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs rejected Go's application, saying it could not confirm the injury occurred while he was on official duty. Go took the case to a local court, which ordered the ministry to cancel its rejection, but he later lost the case in the appeals court.
"The reasons given by the Seoul High Court and the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs for denying Go the status of national meritorious person cannot be considered to be the same. Therefore, it is illegal for the (Seoul High Court) to use its authority to recognize its own reason as justification for (the ministry's) decision," the Supreme Court said.