Representative Lee Jae-myung's Fateful Day... First Trial Verdict Today in 'False Information Disclosure' Case

The first trial result for Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, on charges of false statement publication under the Public Official Election Act will be announced on the 15th.

This will be the court's verdict on the first of the four trials Lee is facing, serving as the initial test to gauge the level of judicial risk he bears.

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, listens to the debate opposing the special prosecutor law for Kim Geon-hee at the plenary session held at the National Assembly on the 14th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min

The Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 34 (Presiding Judge Han Sung-jin) will hold the sentencing hearing for Lee's Public Official Election Act violation case starting at 2:30 p.m. on the same day.

Lee is accused of publishing two false statements during the last presidential election: that he did not know the late Kim Moon-gi, former head of Development Division 1 at Seongnam Urban Development Corporation during his time as mayor of Seongnam, and that the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) coerced him into changing the land use of Baekhyeon-dong site.

Regarding the statement about former Director Kim, Lee claimed that he did not remember Kim because there were so many employees at the time and Kim was a lower-ranking official. However, after the controversy arose, it was revealed that during his tenure as mayor of Seongnam, Lee went on an overseas trip with former Seongnam Urban Development Corporation Planning Director Yoo Dong-gyu and Kim, played golf together, and that Kim had reported directly to Lee multiple times. Yoo also disclosed that during the overseas trip, Kim drove a two-seater cart with Lee.

Based on such evidence and testimonies from related parties, the prosecution concluded that Lee deliberately denied his relationship with Kim in a broadcast interview the day after Kim, who was in charge of the project, took an extreme step to hide Lee's involvement in the Daejang-dong corruption scandal.

Regarding the statement about the Baekhyeon-dong land use change, the prosecution's judgment is that Lee, who had campaigned on a pledge that residential development was not allowed, suddenly reversed his stance and changed the land use of the site, which was a natural green area, to a quasi-residential area by four levels vertically, excluding Seongnam Urban Development Corporation from the project and allowing private developer Jung Ba-ul to proceed alone, due to a request from broker Kim In-seop, a former head of Lee's campaign headquarters. The testimonies of MOLIT officials, Seongnam city officials, and others all contradicted Lee's claim, leading the prosecution to believe that Lee used the nonexistent MOLIT coercion or pressure as an excuse.

In September last year, then Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon explained the reason for requesting Lee's arrest consent at the National Assembly, stating, "Lee claims that the unprecedented four-level land use change was due to 'MOLIT coercion,' but the MOLIT's December 2014 reply stating 'land use changes are at the discretion of local governments,' the testimony of the Seongnam city official who directly reported the reply to Mayor Lee, and testimonies from Seongnam city, MOLIT, and Food Research Institute officials all indicate that there was no coercion or such atmosphere, and most related parties testify that Lee's claim is completely different from the facts and consistent with the above evidence."

In general crimes, the right to run for office is lost only if a prison sentence or higher is confirmed, but for violations of the Public Official Election Act, even a confirmed fine of 1 million won or more restricts the right to run for office for five years. If a fine of 1 million won or more is confirmed in this case, Lee will not only be barred from running in the next presidential election, but the Democratic Party will also have to return the 43.4 billion won in election expenses reimbursed from the last election.

While the media has mainly highlighted the charges related to former Director Kim, legal circles view the possibility of guilt regarding the Baekhyeon-dong land use change charges as higher. Unlike the Kim-related charges, which are subjective and depend on whether Lee remembers Kim, the question of whether MOLIT's pressure actually existed can be determined through objective evidence and testimonies. Especially, since Lee first made the statement at the Gyeonggi Province audit and repeatedly explained the same point in various settings, this is analyzed to have eased the prosecution's burden of proving intent.

If the court acquits Lee, the opposition's persistent claims of "targeted investigation" will gain strength, and calls for the introduction of a special prosecutor for Kim Keon-hee, who has been repeatedly cleared by the prosecution, will grow louder.

On the other hand, if the court finds Lee guilty and sentences him to a fine of 1 million won or more, the Democratic Party's attacks on the prosecution and judiciary will intensify, but internal confusion and division due to Lee's judicial risk becoming reality will be unavoidable.

The court decided on the 13th not to allow filming or live broadcasting of the verdict announcement. It also established a separate order maintenance plan, completely banning general vehicles from entering the Seoul Court Complex, closing some entrances and exits, and significantly strengthening security checks upon entering the court building.

First, to secure a safe route, the court moved the trial from the small courtroom where it was previously held to a medium courtroom with about 100 seats. This measure is to prevent the paths of other courtroom spectators and those related to Lee's trial from overlapping.

In addition to the existing security personnel at the Court Complex, additional Supreme Court security staff will be deployed. Security personnel inside the courtroom will also increase, and access control and security checks at courtroom entrances will be strengthened.

Vehicle control will also be tightened. On the day, general vehicles except for essential vehicles such as official vehicles will be completely banned from entering the Seoul Court Complex. Vehicles of parties or legal representatives involved in other trials will also be restricted.

Meanwhile, Article 270 of the same law (Mandatory provisions on the trial period of election crimes) stipulates that the verdict for election crimes must be delivered within six months from the date the indictment is filed, and the second and third trials must be delivered within three months from the date of the previous trial's verdict. Although the Supreme Court interprets this provision as a "guidance rule" despite the article's title, the trial period is inevitably shorter compared to other crimes. Therefore, it is highly likely that the Supreme Court's final judgment will be made before the next presidential election scheduled for March 2027.

On the 25th, the first trial sentencing hearing for Lee's perjury coaching charge is scheduled. Besides the testimony of Kim Jin-sung, who was coached by Lee to commit perjury and actually lied in court, there is also an audio recording of Lee's voice asking for favorable testimony. This case was one where Chief Judge Yoo Chang-hoon dismissed Lee's arrest warrant in September last year but stated that "the charges seem to be substantiated."

Perhaps aware of this, Lee posted on his Facebook on the 6th, "How can it be perjury coaching when it was a failed coaching?" and on the morning of the same day shared an edited video of the phone call related to the perjury coaching case on his Facebook, writing, "The truth may be temporarily hidden, but it does not disappear and will eventually be revealed," showing his full effort to claim innocence ahead of the verdict.

Earlier, the prosecution demanded a two-year prison sentence for Lee's Public Official Election Act violation and a three-year prison sentence for the perjury coaching charge.