Woong Yoon

Profile

Background

I have been working as a probation officer for seventeen years in South Korea. I studied law in college and social work at master level.

I studied in South Korea.

I worked at probation offices and officer training institute nearly twelve years. In recent five year before I started PhD study in Leeds, my duty was making the laws and decrees relevant to probation, sex offender supervision, electronic monitoring, juvenile justice.

What motivated me to undertake PhD study?

I have been interested in British probation and criminal justice system for a long time as a probation officer. I would like to help Korean probation system to be developed, so I chose to study PhD in the U.K.

What are my plans once I have completed my PhD?

I will be back to my job position in South Korea.

Research interests

Sex crimes emerged as a significant issue in South Korea at the end of the first decade of the twenty-first century. Legislation relating to sexual offences was introduced following an increase in the reporting of sex crimes and the public’s demand for more punitive punishment. As part of the legislative response, pharmacological treatment orders were introduced. With such treatment drugs are used to lower testosterone levels, which leads to a decrease in the male sex drive.  By virtue of the legislation, if a sex offender is a paraphilic judged to be at high risk of reoffending, and the victim was under 16 years of age, the offender can be sentenced to pharmacological treatment for up to fifteen years after his release from prison or preventive medical facility. The consent of the offender is not required

This socio-legal study will explore the introduction of this legislation, problems with the Act and suggest reform of this law. The analysis will draw on the legislative experience of other jurisdictions.