A response to the prosecution's statement of grounds for appeal has been submitted in the appellate case involving Lee Jaemyung, former leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, who was acquitted in the second trial of violating the Public Official Election Act. With the procedures for the official commencement of the Supreme Court's review now completed, it is expected that the Supreme Court will soon formally assign the case to a panel.
According to legal sources on April 21, Lee Jaemyung's legal team submitted their response to the prosecution's statement of grounds for appeal to the Supreme Court on this day. On April 10, the prosecution had submitted its statement of grounds for appeal in the case involving Lee's alleged violation of the Public Official Election Act. Typically, the defendant is given ten days to respond after receiving the prosecution's statement, and it has been confirmed that the response was submitted on the final day of this period.
The Supreme Court had already delivered litigation documents, including the notice of receipt of the case records, to Lee Jaemyung in person. Accordingly, the Supreme Court is expected to begin full-scale review, including the assignment of a panel of justices. Given the high level of public interest in the trial, there is a possibility that the case could be referred to the Grand Bench, where all Supreme Court justices participate in the deliberation.
Lee Jaemyung was indicted in September 2022 on charges of making false statements during the Democratic Party's 2021 presidential primary?specifically, claiming not to know the late Kim Moonki, former head of Development Division 1 at Seongnam Development Corporation, and making allegedly false remarks related to Baekhyeon-dong. On November 1 of last year, Lee was sentenced in the first trial to one year in prison, suspended for two years?a sentence that would have resulted in the loss of his parliamentary seat. However, on March 26 of this year, he was acquitted in the appellate court.
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