ADEL, IOWA — A former Simpson College professor will serve up to ten years in prison after entering a guilty plea on Tuesday for killing her husband in February 2020 at their West Des Moines home.

Gowun Park entered an Alford plea of guilty to charges of Voluntary Manslaughter, Kidnapping – 3rd Degree and Domestic Abuse; admitting there was enough evidence to be found guilty without actually admitting to any crime. The judge sentenced her to a combined 25 years in prison for the charges, but allowed her to serve the sentences concurrently — meaning she will only have to be imprisoned for 10 years.

Gowun Park admitted that she used zip-ties to bind the hands and feet of her husband, Sung Woo Nam, and then tied him to a chair, stuffed a sock in his mouth and then covered his mouth with duct tape. After her husband lost consciousness while tied up, Park called 911. First responders found Park performing CPR on her husband who had no vital signs. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Gowun Park has contested that her husband agreed to be tied up when he became violent to prevent him from causing harm or injury. Park says that Sung Woo Nam had a history of domestic abuse against her.

In the courtroom on Tuesday, prosecutors presented the evidence they would have relied on in trial, including photos of Sung Woo Nam’s body from his autopsy and pictures of the bindings used on him in his home. The photos brought invoked an emotional response from the audience in the courtroom, as family members openly wept and wailed in grief.

Gowun Park’s defense team presented testimony from domestic violence advocate Kristen Faisal who described the cycle of psychological impact that a cycle of domestic violence can have on an abused spouse. Faisal testified that the limited evidence she was presented by Park’s defense indicated signs of domestic abuse.

Gowun Park’s trial has been delayed for years after her attorneys successfully argued that most of the comments Park made to officers were inadmissible in court due to Park being improperly Mirandized.