David Kang, a professor at the University of Southern California (USC), is now facing two additional sexual misconduct lawsuits — one filed by a USC doctoral student and another by a minor at a Los Angeles private school — following a 2024 lawsuit from a former research assistant.
According to Los Angeles County Superior Court records, Na Young Lee, a doctoral student in international relations at USC, filed her complaint (Case No. 25STCV28086) on September 25, 2025, at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse against David Kang and the University of Southern California, a California corporation. The complaint, first reported by ‘Morning, Trojan’, an independent student news outlet covering USC, alleges sexual harassment, gender and racial discrimination, retaliation, failure to prevent harassment, civil-rights violations, and emotional distress.
A case-management conference is scheduled for January 29, 2026, in Department 19 before Judge Doreen B. Boxer. Court filings show proofs of service were filed October 14 for both defendants.
Lee claims Kang hired her as a teaching assistant and then forced her to perform household chores, made unwanted romantic advances, and touched her inappropriately. The lawsuit states that USC failed to act on multiple reports of misconduct and tolerated racially disparaging behavior toward Asian women. Lee also alleges that after she disclosed having a boyfriend, Kang grabbed her leg, told her he wanted to marry her and have a child, then sent her messages for over 12 hours saying, “You’ll regret this.” She also accuses him of removing her name from a joint research paper in retaliation.
A separate lawsuit, unrelated to USC, was filed by Jane Doe 1 (Case No. 25STCV25372) on August 28, 2025, against David Kang and the First Congregational Church of Los Angeles, which operates Pilgrim School. The complaint, first reported by ‘Morning, Trojan’, an independent student news outlet covering USC, alleges sexual assault, sexual abuse, negligent supervision, and institutional cover-up, claiming Kang, a board member and girls’ soccer coach, engaged in repeated inappropriate sexual acts with a 15-year-old student. The case is assigned to Judge Upinder S. Kalra in Department 51, with a case-management conference set for December 19, 2025, and a demurrer hearing on January 13, 2026.
Kang’s previous case (Case No. 24STCV21826), filed by former research assistant Kyu Ri Kim in August 2024, remains pending. Kim’s lawsuit accuses Kang and USC of sexual harassment and retaliation. A final status conference is scheduled for March 19, 2026, followed by a jury trial on March 30, 2026, in Department 12 at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse.
Attempts by The Korea Daily to reach Kang for comment via email were unsuccessful as of October 15, 2025. Kang’s profile remains active on the USC faculty directory. A USC spokesperson said, “Professor Kang is not teaching this semester. The university takes all reports of sexual harassment and discrimination very seriously and has established procedures to investigate and ensure safety.”
Kang, 60, earned degrees from Stanford University and UC Berkeley, previously taught at Dartmouth College, and joined USC in 2009, where he serves as director of the Korean Studies Institute and is the author of “Nuclear North Korea.”
BY YOONJAE JUNG [jung.yoonjae@koreadaily.com]
