David Kang (born 1970) is an Australian

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

. In January 1994 he fired two blank shots from a

starting pistol A starting pistol or starter pistol is a blank handgun that is fired to start track and field races, as well as competitive swimming races at some meets. Starter guns cannot fire real ammunition without first being extensively modified: Blank ...

Charles, Prince of Wales Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

in protest at the treatment of several hundred Cambodian

asylum seekers An asylum seeker is a person who leaves their country of residence, enters another country and applies for asylum (i.e., international protection) in that other country. An asylum seeker is an immigrant who has been forcibly displaced and mi ...

held in detention camps in Australia.

Early life and education

David Kang was born in Australia to Robert Kang, a former

Republic of Korea Air Force The Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF; ko, 대한민국 공군; RR: ''Daehanminguk Gong-gun''), also known as the ROK Air Force or South Korean Air Force, is the aerial warfare service branch of South Korea, operating under the Ministry of N ...

helicopter pilot. At the time of the starting pistol incident, in 1994, Kang was an anthropology student at

Macquarie University Macquarie University ( ) is a public research university based in Sydney, Australia, in the suburb of Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of S ...

. Kang later graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in anthropology from the university.

Protest against Prince Charles

On 26 January 1994, the 23-year old Kang fired two blank shots from a

during an

Australia Day Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove and raising of the Union Flag by Arthur Phillip following days of exploration of Port Ja ...

speech at Tumbalong Park,

Darling Harbour Darling Harbour is a harbour adjacent to the city centre of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia that is made up of a large recreational and pedestrian precinct that is situated on western outskirts of the Sydney central business district. Origin ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

.Alternate Link
/ref> Kang jumped a small fence at the front of the stage and ran onto the stage, firing the first shot with his pistol as he rushed towards the Prince, who had just risen to approach the lectern on the stage. He was wrestled to the ground by police after crashing into the lectern as he fired the second shot. At least 15 people jumped onto the assailant, while the Prince's bodyguard shielded the Prince, who was removed from the stage. The Prince sustained no injuries and would next visit Sydney on 28 February 2005. One police officer received a cut hand while tackling Kang. Local police expressed admiration for the speed with which the Prince's Senior

Personal Protection Officer A personal protection officer (PPO) is an officer of the Metropolitan Police Protection Command who is assigned for the personal protection of members of the British royal family, the prime minister, government ministers, ambassadors, visiting he ...

Superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

Colin Trimming, rose to protect the Prince. The personal bravery of the Prince was also remarked upon by

Ian Kiernan Ian Bruce Carrick Kiernan (4 October 1940 – 16 October 2018) was an Australian yachtsman, property developer, builder, and environmental campaigner, known for co-founding with Kim McKay the not-for-profit ''Clean Up Australia'' campaign in 19 ...

, saying that the prince was "cool as a cucumber". Others on the stage included Rear Admiral Peter Sinclair, AO (the

Governor of New South Wales The governor of New South Wales is the viceregal representative of the Australian monarch, King Charles III, in the state of New South Wales. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia at the national level, the governors of the ...

), John Fahey (the

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

of New South Wales),

Frank Sartor Francesco Ernest "Frank" Sartor AO (born 9 November 1951) is a former Australian politician who served as New South Wales Minister for Climate Change and the Environment and Minister Assisting the Minister for Health (Cancer) between 2009 and ...

(the

Lord Mayor of Sydney The Right Honourable the Lord Mayor of Sydney is the head of the Council of the City of Sydney, which is the local government area covering the central business district of Sydney in the State of New South Wales, Australia. The Lord Mayor has be ...

), and

Tony Lauer Anthony Raymond Lauer, (born 19 December 1935) is a former police officer who served as the Commissioner of the New South Wales Police from 1991 until 1996. In February 1996, Lauer's term ended in controversy with his resignation soon after th ...

(the New South Wales Commissioner of Police). Kang had been the second person to attack a royal in Sydney after Irishman

Henry James O'Farrell Henry James O'Farrell (183321 April 1868) was the first person to attempt a political assassination in Australia. On 12 March 1868, he shot and wounded Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, the second son and fourth child of Queen Victoria. Biog ...

. O'Farrell shot at Prince Alfred and was later hanged. At the time, Kang was mistakenly reported as being of Cambodian descent and the incident sparked some debate about monarchism and republicanism in Australia.

Arrest, trial, and sentence

Kang was arrested and taken to Sydney Police Centre on

Goulburn Street Goulburn Street is a street in the central business district of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. Goulburn Street is in the southern portion of the Sydney central business district and runs from Darling Harbour and Chinatown in the w ...

. On the following day, he appeared in court and, facing six charges, including two under the ''Federal Crimes (Internationally Protected Persons) Act 1976'' (Cth) (i.e., attacking an internationally protected person) and charges of illegally using a firearm, possessing a firearm,

affray In many legal jurisdictions related to English common law, affray is a public order offence consisting of the fighting of one or more persons in a public place to the terror (in french: à l'effroi) of ordinary people. Depending on their act ...

, and

assault An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in crim ...

, was

remanded in custody Remand, also known as pre-trial detention, preventive detention, or provisional detention, is the process of detaining a person until their trial after they have been arrested and charged with an offence. A person who is on remand is held i ...

until 4 February 1994. If convicted on all counts, Kang could have received a 20-year sentence. In court, Kang testified that he was suffering from depression and was protesting the plight of

Cambodian Cambodian usually refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Cambodia ** Cambodian people (or Khmer people) ** Cambodian language (or Khmer language) ** For citizens and nationals of Cambodia, see Demographics of Cambodia ** Fo ...

refugees in Australia. Kang had previously written letters to the Prince of Wales, the President of the United States, the United Nations, and the Pope, among others, and had received a

form letter A form letter is a letter written from a template, rather than being specially composed for a specific recipient. The most general kind of form letter consists of one or more regions of boilerplate text interspersed with one or more substitution p ...

reply from the Prince. Kang was found guilty of threatening unlawful violence and sentenced to 500 hours of community service. 11 years after the event, Kang said of the incident, "What happened 11 years ago was an extremely traumatic experience and I have certainly moved on in my life and now I have become a barrister here in Sydney." He also emphasized he did not intend to hurt anyone during his protest.

Career

Following the incident, Kang earned a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

from the

University of Technology Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Although its origins are said to trace back to the 1830s, the university was founded in its current form in 1988. As of 2021 ...

and a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

with honours from the

Sydney Law School Sydney Law School (informally Sydney Law or SLS) is the law school at the University of Sydney, Australia's oldest university. Sydney Law School began a full program of legal instruction in 1890 following the appointment of its first dean, having ...

.Find a Barrister at New South Wales Bar Association: David Kang
/ref>

Legal career

Despite having been found guilty of a crime, the New South Wales Bar Association found that Kang was a "fit and proper person", with the president of the

New South Wales Bar Association The New South Wales Bar Association is a professional body of lawyers responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The body administers the bar examination in accordance with the Legal Profe ...

remarking that he had "served his time", admitting him as a barrister in 2004. Kang practises as a barrister, specialising in criminal law, commercial and corporations law, equity, and medical negligence,Ada Evans Chambers: David KangArchived
/ref> at Ada Evans Chambers in Sydney.

Personal life

Kang is married with two children. His interests, as listed on his chambers website, include tennis, soccer, and swimming.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kang, David 1971 births Date of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) Australian male criminals Australian barristers Australian people of Korean descent Charles III Living people Macquarie University alumni Sydney Law School alumni University of Technology Sydney alumni