[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] As the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) spreads, courts at all levels nationwide have effectively entered a recess period for two weeks from the 25th to the 6th of next month. This measure follows the Supreme Court's recommendation the previous day to operate trial dates equivalent to a recess period.
If the COVID-19 situation eases during this period, it would be fortunate, but if it worsens, a significant number of trials in courts at all levels are expected to be postponed indefinitely. In particular, the Seoul Central District Court and the Seoul High Court, where major cases are already delayed, may see trial durations extended further, raising the possibility of prolonged litigation.
Will the Trial of the Ulsan Mayor Election Interference Case Be Further Delayed?
The trial causing the greatest concern is the 'alleged interference by the Blue House in the Ulsan mayoral election.' This case was received by the Seoul Central District Court on January 29th last month, following prosecution indictment, and was assigned to the 21st Criminal Division (Presiding Judge Kim Miri). It was classified as an important case requiring timely handling. When selected as a case requiring timely handling, it is prioritized over other cases, and trial intervals are scheduled more closely to expedite proceedings. However, although nearly a month has passed since the indictment, no trial date has yet been set. It is effectively pending.
Amid this, with the COVID-19 situation overlapping, concerns are emerging that the formal trial may be postponed until after the April general election. In the worst case, even preparatory hearings without the defendant's attendance obligation might not be held until the April election. If the trial is delayed in this way, suspicions of 'trial postponement due to election considerations' could deepen. Currently, Han Byung-do, former Senior Secretary for Political Affairs, Hwang Un-ha, former Chief of Ulsan Police, Jang Hwan-seok, former Blue House administrator, and Song Byung-gi, former Ulsan Deputy Mayor, all indicted in this case, have declared their candidacy for this general election and are active as Democratic Party preliminary candidates.
Inevitable Impact on the Trials of the Cho Family
The spread of COVID-19 is also expected to affect the trials of the Cho family. For now, the trial of Cho Kwon, younger brother of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk, scheduled for today, and the trial of his wife, Professor Chung Kyung-shim of Dongyang University, scheduled for the 27th, have both been postponed. The trial of Cho Beom-dong, a fifth cousin scheduled for the 26th, has not yet had a postponement decision, but considering the current situation, it is likely to be delayed.
However, if these trials are delayed for a long time, it will be difficult to deliver verdicts within the defendants' detention periods. This unprecedented situation could lead to non-custodial trials for cases originally prosecuted under detention due to the variable of the epidemic. The detention periods for the fifth cousin Cho, younger brother Cho, and Professor Chung are until April and May, respectively, leaving about two to three months.
The trial of former Minister Cho is also within the scope of impact. The family corruption case of former Minister Cho was received by the Seoul Central District Court in December last year but was merged last month with the investigation obstruction case, postponing the trial to March 20th next month. If the COVID-19 situation does not improve, there is a possibility of further postponement. Since being classified as a case requiring timely handling, no trial has been held even once.
Unexpected Inclusion in the Impact Zone... Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong
The retrial of Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong is also in a position to be affected by the spread of COVID-19 as an unexpected variable. The special prosecutor team led by Park Young-soo filed a motion to disqualify Presiding Judge Jung Jun-young of the Seoul High Court Criminal Division 1, who is presiding over this retrial, the day before.
When a disqualification motion is filed, a different court panel, not the one in charge of the case, reviews the grounds for disqualification and decides whether to accept it. Accordingly, the retrial of Vice Chairman Lee will not be held for the time being, and if COVID-19 spreads further during this period, it is expected that considerable time will be needed before the trial can resume.
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