I find this ridiculous, one year for a drunken mistake? Im pretty sure at those parties there were more people who probably took more drugs, and probably much more frequently too, then why did the police only arrest him? Seems like he's been made a scapegoat by the police, and the judge.

Poor guy, I hope the media lay off him, who knows what he might do to himself in prison. Hopefully he'll return in 3 years (hopes its two tho, whats the success of re-trails in Korea?)

Stay strong JJH, and the other two aswell.

Holy crap o__0 He really got sentenced to a year? Wow, I'm rather shocked. But yeah, you're right. It's probably best that he drops off the radar for now and hopefully can make a comeback after his prison time and army service...

Laws are different everywhere. We are used to our own legal systems, which has alot of loopholes, so something like this may be very minor to us but it is a big deal to them. Since this has been done, I hope he comes back stronger and better. He really is a talented actor.

I still love ya JiHoon!

I had a dream he took them whilst drunk out of his face (I wont go into my crazy dreams) but anyway, I hope he gets work when he gets back! He's a talented actor...

I'm just saddened by this. Being European, it's really hard to understand how he can get a year in prison for something he is not even caught doing. Different worlds.....

I... don't even know what to say.....
For one side is good that in Korea are strict with this kind of issues, but for the other, a year!!! and then military duty, I think his carreer will suffer a lot, and I really like him.

oh well we don't have more to do but wait and see.

@4 Robyn, and others:

JJH actually faces up to 0-5 years in prison, based on the Korean criminal statute. The prosecution is suggesting 1 year in jail, but the judge doesn't have to follow that. The judge could, theoretically, could give no prison time at all, or go harsh to 5 years.

But given the amount of publicity, I would guess that the judge will accept the prosecution's recommendation for JJH. As for the other two, I cannot imagine what will happen - the other two aren't as famous, and so if they are given harsher sentences than 5 and 7 years, then people will ask why JJH got off easier.

Yet, it is puzzling. I don't know how the sentences' lengths (for the other two) were determined. Trafficking in Korea in those kinds of drugs (assuming that X and K are the same as heroin, for the purposes of the sentencing) requires a minimum of 10 years in prison, so having 5 and 7 years for trafficking is actually a little bit surprising.

He was caught using drugs ( while in possession? )
the other two charged with trafficking and selling, which is harsher?.

If I read this right these are not the sentences given by the judge, the final verdict will be on June 23rd. There was no trial as he plead guilty so his punishment is pretty much up to the judge. The sentences mentioned above are ones being sought by their legal teams. The judge may serve up a harsher sentence!
I don't think we've seen the last of JJH. I have respect for people who admit their mistakes and face up to their punishment so I hope others are also willing to forgive and forget and give him a second chance.
If not he can serve his time and complete his military duty and find another career path. I wish him well.

@9, sunshine

My understanding of the facts is that JJH wasn't caught using drugs or caught with drugs.

1. There was a drug trafficking bust, and the people who were caught ended up ratting him out.

2. The prosecutor's office then had JJH investigated and questioned, and JJH admited to having used drugs the month before.

3. JJH was then indicted for drug use.

4. JJH pleaded guilty on June 9, and the prosecutor's office recommended 1 year in prison.

5. In a few weeks, the judge will decide what fine and what prison sentence, if any, to give, based on witness testimony, JJH contrition, prosecutorial recommendation, political and social factors, etc.

Trafficking and selling, which is harsher? I don't understand the question. Using drugs is less of a crime than trafficking, but trafficking and selling is the same thing...?

So, if he spends a year in prison, then two years in the military, what are the chances that he'll be able to rejuvenate his acting career following that? How long is he banned from Korean TV? What about his modeling career, would any big name brands be willing to offer him work after this scandal?

I just feel so sorry for him.

Amazing how this would only have ignited his career had this happened in America...sad but true. And that's if it even made the news at all. Drugs and celebrities just go hand in hand here.

@Samsooki :Thanks for sorting it out, I was abit confused with it all. So until a few weeks we won't know the verdict, hopefully the judge doesnt dish out too harsh a punishment, military duty should be sufficent.

In a way it is good that they have a very strict law when it comes to drug use.If you don't want to get into trouble,stay away from drugs. Korean celebrities should learn from his mistake.I just hope people will give him a second chance in his career when he gets back .

looks like a mess.

Ah no way :(
Hopefully he'll go the way Kate Moss did, which was to get dropped from a couple of campaigns, have the media hate on her for a while, then come back better and more talked about than ever. Having said that, Korea is slightly different than Britain and I don't think Moss ever went to court for taking coke...

I think it's completely refreshing that Korea is such a conservative place and is willing to take the proper action against drug use. Hopefully this will get out a message to Koreans young and old - DON'T do drugs!

He looks an ugly MESS! I dont feel bad for him..you commit a crime you pay for it. done deal

@12, commenting on my own post

Not to say that I condone drug use by any means, and I applaud Korea for their tough stance on drugs as I'm sure this goes a long way towards deterring people from experimenting. I just feel that for a first offense (as far as we know, anyway), especially since he wasn't caught in the act or in possession of drugs, the penalties seem harsh. One thing is for sure, that old saying "if you can't be a good example, then you'll have to serve as a horrible warning" certainly applies to JJH.

I wish him well and hope that things turn back around for him in the future.

apparently he's asking for some leniency saying that he will serve his MS duties right away.
the netizens and the general public are very disappointed and disgusted that he's trying to use the MS as "community serve" when its mandatory duty that all Korean men must do.
for this reason the netizens dont even want to see him back on screen..

NO WAY!!!!!!!!! ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh :(
I really do feel sorry for him! to get a year in prison for doing drugs ONCE and you were NOT even caught doing it!!! that's so harsh!! he could have easily denied all of these things and said he never did drugs!!
Jihoon what have you got yourself into!!!! bad bad boy! :(

anyway, thanks Samsooki for clearing up this matter!!
gosh I hope he's ok now and not depressed about the whole thing! please don't be depressed Jihoon! :( :(

But if doing drugs however many times would lead to imprisonment as Korea always has VERY strict drug laws, then I don't feel it's harsh. The laws r laid, and he as a citizen has to comply. He's made a grave mistake, and there r dire consequences. It's parellel to if he accidentally killed someone without premeditation, even if it's just 'once', he'll be expected to do serious jail time.

I recall an actress got sentenced to some jail time in prison for adultery? That is even more bizarre to me.

I agree with # 21 - it seems somewhat harsh for a first offense.

I guess Korean prisons have room to house those convicted of 'less serious' crimes or misdemeanors. U.S. prisons are overflowing with the 'more serious' offenders - not that that's good in any way, of course.

I wish him well.

the korean government is wack. and they need to get their priority straight. they want to set an example out of joo ji-hoon. why don't they set an example of themself? serve justice. not what benefits them.

holy CRAP
a YEAR? :| i am REALLLY shocked! =|
:'( i really like him, and i guess i can't understand how harsh the sentences are and the korean legal system.

wow.....

I think first offense should be sent to rehab. It seems it would be more helpful to him and society, to use treatment. Then if a second offense... to Jail.
Many young people experiment with drugs but never do them again. Education instead of fear. I wish him well and hope people will forgive him and not destroy his life for one mistake and that has nothing to do with him being a celebrity. I wish the same treatment for any young person who gets sidetracked from the straight and narrow.
If you are a person of faith....pray for him, the other two that was arrested with him, and all the people who experiment or get involved in drugs. Pray their lives will be changed for the good and they someday can be a blessing to someone else.
But for the Grace of God go I.

Oh... it's sooo hash.... Asian countries... I suspect my son must have tried or was doing it during his RAVE years... Worst of all was him not being in contact with his parents for almost a year. A really heart wrenching period in my life....Thank God, he grew out of it... Here in the States, most of us have our encounters with drugs one way or another and had a chance to decide for ourselves... Yikes, it sure was not for me. No thanks for drugs, alcohol and smoking(and caffeine and refined sugar and meat and the list goes on). A year in prison is such a long time in a young person's life. Can't imagine what his parents are going through... What is done is done. My prayers is with him and for his future... And Thank you Javabeans for this site, I really enjoy your comments and recaps.

I'm rather shocked! i mean he was just having fun...just partying ... a bit of a harsh penalty for enjoying yourself...

Wow, that's harsh! I wonder how many prisons it would take to hold all the drug users in the US. And how many years my uncle has racked up in sentences since he's been a junkie for 40 years.

I agree that there should be a zero tolerance attitude toward drugs world wide (though I feel ridiculously bad for JJH at the same time - I'm trying to think of him as I would anyone else and I hope that if he DOES end up in jail, that korean prisons are not like american ones). It seems strange to us who aren't asian to hear of such extreme measure being taken but those arrested grew up there. They know the law, they knew what they were doing and disregarded the consequences. Yes, it was a drunken mistake that would be overlooked anywhere else in the world but hopefully his being used as an example will keep more people away from making the same decision.

Regardless, I'm rooting for him and hope to see him again in a few years. 'Til then I'll keep watching Antique until I can pronounce half of it! XD

PS. Wow, that's a bad picture lol

Stunned to say the least, Joo Ji Hoon has taken the flack from public ire, the media, loss of work/livelihood and been hung out to dry. Apart from the trafficker and dealer, all the others involved party goers/celebs in the investigation have been kept out of the limelight and pre-legal punishment, only hints of several other users - actor (lead in a drama), singer etc.

I really hope the judge will not use JJH as a public sacrifice to prove a point so that the later ones are dealt with after the dust settles.

Hope other Korean artists can learn from this incident..Once, you got caught using drugs, there's no other way to escape..And the bad news is, there's a chance that your fans will run away from you knowing that her/his idol doing somethin' bad which can not be tolerate..

I think Joo Ji Hoon is a great actor..Hope he can come back as new person and not doing that bad thing-using drugs anymore..

I was shocked to read that a whole year imprisonment could last for drug abuse, but then again it is Korea and not USA which I guess is just more lenient on the abuse.

JOO JI HOON I SUPPORT U!!!!!! Man, i bet alot of people do drugs and stuff, why is he the only one caught. I mean in America, there are so much stars caught doing drugs and it doesn't even make headlines.

I think Korean laws are overly conservative and outdated. C'mon, they have laws that could send you to prison for ADULTERY!

Maybe it's just because I live in America that I find this ridiculous. I'm trying my best to be open-minded here. But whatever, as someone who has "experienced" some rather messy situations in the past, including what JJH is being jailed for, I can honestly say that people make mistakes - slamming him in the public spotlight isn't going to help things. The drug industry will continue, and all this has done is destroyed the career of bright star and dragged out something that could have ended quietly.

A year in prison?! You've got to be joking! WTH! With everything else that's happened to him...isn't it enough already! gees.....crucify much! I really hope, whatever it is that happens to him or however long it takes, that he makes it out of this okay in the end........and that's not me as a JJH fan......i just feel for him as a person.

ugh, that's my last comment on this topic!

Now, I can lay him to rest ... until I see another hot photoshop pix of him.

kekeke ...

:)

Whoa! Sorry for being shallow but he looks really awful in that photo. Not that I'm complaining. The drug law in Korea is quite firm huh.

I've been following this story and never really had an opinion on it for I didn't really know him.. But I watched The Naked Kitchen this weekend and started watching Goong right after (Third day: Episode 22... Oh god. Hahaha.) So now that I know him and seen his acting skills.. It's kind of a shame he succumbed to the drugs.. But I agree that it's a good time for him to disappear for a while and start fresh and clean later.

Ps. Yoon Seol Hee received (or is facing?) seven years. Seven years? Wow. And a hefty fine.. The drug industry may make you rich but when you're caught.. You're done.

I will be most surprised if JJH can ever resurrected his modelling & acting carreer again if he ever goes to jail.

Perhaps with the abundant of $$$ he had already make, he should be making future plans in business.

have to agree with djes, it's worse to judge an entire country because your favorite actor is going to jail for using drugs. sure, their drug laws maybe too harsh by western standards, but shouldn't JJH and everyone who uses drugs there know that already? i think it's safe to say he used drugs knowing what the consequences are if he is caught -- possible jail time, loss of acting jobs and endorsements.

I really wish he didn't have to go to jail. I mean I understand about punishment, but as said I think it is interesting the different laws between Korea and the United States. Some celebrities just end up having to pay and then doing community service. I think if nothing else it will keep celebrities more aware that just because they are well known, it doesn't mean they won't have to face the consequences of other citizens.

So sad. I hope he has a strong family to support him through this.

Are there different levels of prisons in Korea like in America, where the maximum security prisons are hellish and the low security ones are like detention centers? If prison is really like what Kim Shin of A Story of a Man/Slingshot experienced, how would JJH even survive that?

as I know, prisoned guys need not military service.
Maybe.....(I'm sorry I don't know exactly, but as Korean rule) a year in prison has no military service.

agree with djes and anon, JJH knew exactly what he was doing and knew the consequences very well, since he grew up in Korea. I just wish that the public will give him another chance afterwards, after jail time, plus military service, and maybe a couple more years for him to be accepted again in public.

if i'm not mistaken there are news that there are other celebrities involved in this case, is there any news regarding this??

be strong jjh..we all here to support you!!(as if he's reading this) =(