Court orders U.S. soldier to compensate victim's family

More than 37,000 U.S. soldiers are based in South Korea

SEOUL, South Korea -- A South Korean court has ordered a U.S. serviceman jailed for the murder of a South Korean bar girl to pay $175,000 (230 million won) in compensation to the victim's family.

Christopher McCarthy, 24, is currently serving a six-year jail term for beating Kim Sung-Hi to death after she refused to have sex with him.

Passing his ruling in a civil case brought by the victim's family, Judge Ahn Young-Yul said McCarthy was obliged to compensate them for the "financial and mental damages" his crimes had sustained.

The unprecedented ruling by the Seoul district court marks the first time a U.S. soldier based in South Korea has been held personally responsible for providing compensation for crimes he has committed in the country.

In earlier cases, under the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) between the U.S. and South Korean authorities, the U.S. military compensates any damages caused by its soldiers and the soldiers later repaid the military.

'Confession'

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McCarthy was not in court to hear the ruling and has two weeks to appeal to a higher court.

The South Korean court said it ruled against him because he neither attended trials nor appointed an attorney to defend himself -- equivalent to a confession under South Korean laws

There are currently about 37,000 U.S. troops stationed in South Korea under a mutual defense treaty designed to deter any attack by the communist North.

As in the Japanese island of Okinawa, which is also home to a large deployment of U.S. troops, their presence has been a focus for complaint from locals concerned about crimes committed by the soldiers and the punishments handed out to their perpetrators.

Under the terms of the SOFA treaty, first signed in 1966 and revised in 1991, the U.S. military holds custody of accused soldiers until all appeals have been through the South Korean legal system.

The agreement was revised again last January giving South Korea increased jurisdiction over soldiers accused of a range of serious crimes.

Under the new treaty, members of the U.S forces accused of murder, rape, arson, drug trafficking and eight other crimes would be turned over to South Korean authorities upon indictment.