WARMBIER v. DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF KOREA
Cite as 356 F.Supp.3d 30 (D.D.C. 2018)
and was never expected or asked to pay
for his siblings’ tuition,’’ F. W. Decl. ¶ 8;
and (5) Otto said he conspired with ‘‘the Z
Society,’’ but had no connection to any
such organization, id.
In addition to these false statements in
his ‘‘confession,’’ Otto spoke with ‘‘unnatural’’ language that sounded as if he had
‘‘been forced to memorize’’ the words. Id.
¶¶ 8, 9. Otto, for instance, said ‘‘I came to
commit this crime task,’’ ‘‘[t]he United
States administration already knows about
my act through the CIA, which is closely
linked to the Z Society and connived at my
crime,’’ ‘‘[t]his was a very foolish aim,’’
‘‘[t]his made an innocent-minded, adventurous young man, like myself, want to
show my bravery to improve my reputation and show a Western victory of the
DPR Korea,’’ and ‘‘I intentionally packed
my quietest boots, the best for sneaking. I
knew that I would wear them during my
crime commitment.’’ Id. ¶ 9.
Otto’s ‘‘strange phrases,’’ such as the
references to the ‘‘U.S. administration,’’
‘‘DPR Korea instead of DPRK,’’ and his
‘‘quietest boots for sneaking’’ were ‘‘clumsy’’ North Korean ‘‘stock phrase[s]’’ that
provide ‘‘no doubt TTT that this was a
coerced confession under great duress.’’
H’rg Tr. (Rough) at 123–25 (Expert Prof.
Sung-Yoon Lee). Moreover, Otto’s reference to ‘‘hostile U.S. policy’’ three times,
and the notion that Otto, as the oldest
child, would need to subsidize his younger
siblings’ college tuition—an expectation of
the eldest son in Korean culture—are reflective of ‘‘Korean connotation,’’ further
indicating North Korea ‘‘imposed’’ this material in Otto’s confession. Id. at 124–25
(Expert Prof. Sung-Yoon Lee).
Shortly after Otto’s purported ‘‘confession,’’ the U.S. State Department assured
Otto’s parents that Otto’s detention was
nearing a ‘‘mature phase,’’ and North Korea would ‘‘finally call.’’ F. W. Decl. ¶ 10.
39
Fred and Cindy learned nothing, however,
until KCNA reported on North Korea’s
‘‘trial’’ of Otto, on March 16, 2016, where
North Korea convicted Otto on a charge of
state subversion and sentenced him to fifteen years of hard labor, based on his
purported ‘‘confession’’ to the crime. Hatch
Decl., Ex. E (KCNA Article on Otto’s ‘‘Trial,’’ titled ‘‘American Student Sentenced to
15 Years of Hard Labor in DPRK’’).
KCNA stated Otto committed the crime
‘‘pursuant to the U.S. government’s hostile
policy’’ towards North Korea. Id. Short
video excerpts of Otto’s ‘‘trial’’ were released, but no public court records have
ever been made available. See Hatch Decl.,
Ex. F (ABC Good Morning America News
Broadcast Containing Clips of Otto’s ‘‘Trial’’) (‘‘Video of ‘Trial’ ’’); Hatch Decl. ¶ 7. In
the excerpts, Otto’s hands are ‘‘curled in,’’
and he is ‘‘completely distressed’’ and ‘‘visibly upset.’’ See Hatch Decl., Ex. F (Video
of ‘‘Trial’’); F. W. Decl. ¶ 11.
North Korea continued to detain Otto
for an additional 15 months after this ‘‘trial,’’ for a total detention period of approximately 17.5 months. See F. W. Decl. ¶ 21.
During Otto’s detention, Otto’s family received ‘‘almost no information about
[Otto’s] condition,’’ F. W. Decl. ¶ 15, and
Otto’s parents ultimately had no way to
communicate with him, H’rg Tr. (Rough)
at 21–22 (F. W.); C. W. Decl. ¶ 17. Although Otto’s parents initially were told
they could send Otto emails through the
State Department, which forwarded them
to Swedish intermediaries in North Korea
for delivery to Otto, Otto’s parents never
heard anything directly from Otto and
have no idea if he received any of this
correspondence. H’rg Tr. (Rough) at 21–22
(F. W.); C. W. Decl. ¶ 17; F. W. Decl. ¶ 12.
By June 2016, the State Department told
Otto’s parents that they could no longer
email Otto because North Korea consid-