After a 61-year wait, Choi Mal-ja, 78, has been acquitted of an aggravated bodily injury conviction from 1964, stemming from an act of self-defense against attempted rape. Her retrial, concluded on July 23, 2025, at the Busan District Court, marks a significant moment for justice in South Korea.

• Choi Mal-ja was 18 when she bit off 1.5cm of her attacker's tongue in self-defense.
• She was originally sentenced to 10 months in prison, suspended for two years, while her attacker received a lighter six-month suspended sentence for trespassing and intimidation.
• Inspired by the #MeToo movement, Choi sought a retrial in 2020, with the South Korean Supreme Court overturning lower court rejections in December 2024.
• During her retrial, Senior prosecutor Jeong Myeong-won of the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office publicly apologized to Choi in court.