A professor at the University of Southern California (USC) has been accused of deleting potential evidence in a sexual misconduct and retaliation lawsuit filed by a Korean American teaching assistant, leading the plaintiff to seek severe court sanctions that could determine the case’s outcome.
According to the LA County Superior Court, attorneys for the plaintiff allege that David Kang (Korean name Chanwoong Kang), 60, deleted text messages and emails relevant to the lawsuit. The plaintiff argues that these records are central to claims of sexual misconduct and retaliation.
Ahead of a hearing scheduled for January 27th, the plaintiff asked Judge Barbara Myers to impose terminating sanctions against Kang, citing the alleged destruction of evidence. If granted, the sanctions could result in a judgment in favor of the plaintiff.
The plaintiff claims Kang deleted text messages exchanged with the Korean American teaching assistant from his mobile phone and also deleted a personal email account. Based on these actions, the plaintiff alleges Kang concealed evidence tied to the case and made false statements, thereby misleading the court.
In a written statement, Kang acknowledged deleting the text messages and the email account but disputed the intent behind those actions. He said the deletions followed recommendations from the USC IT team and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) due to cybersecurity concerns. Kang stated that, as a professor of international relations involved in national security research and commentary on North Korea and global affairs, he faced heightened risks of foreign hacking and therefore enabled an automatic deletion setting that removed text messages after 30 days. He also acknowledged that deleting the messages and the email account was inappropriate.
The Korean American teaching assistant filed the lawsuit against Kang and USC in August 2024, alleging that Kang began seeking a personal relationship in November 2021 by repeatedly inviting her to lunch. The complaint states that after hiring her as a research assistant, Kang attempted to exert emotional control through his position of authority.
BY HYOUNGJAE KIM [kim.ian@koreadaily.com]
