Evidence Request for "Noh Sangwon Notebook" Denied
Lee Jongseop and Kim Gyehwan Accepted as Witnesses... Yoon's Testimony Deferred
The legal team representing former Marine Investigation Unit Commander (Colonel) Junghoon Park, who was indicted on charges of insubordination and defamation of a superior in connection with the initial investigation into the death of Marine Corporal Chae, submitted the "Noh Sangwon Notebook" as evidence in the second trial, but the request was denied. The court postponed its decision on whether to accept former President Yoon Suk-yeol, who was requested as a witness.
Former Marine Investigation Unit Commander (Colonel) Junghoon Park, who was acquitted in the first trial related to the death of Marine Corporal Chae, appeared at the second appellate trial preparation hearing held on May 16, 2025, at the Seoul High Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yongjun Cho
On May 16, the Criminal Division 4-1 of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judges Youngnan Ji, Hyukjoong Kwon, and Jingoo Hwang) held the second appellate trial preparation hearing.
On this day, the court rejected the evidence request regarding the "Noh Sangwon Notebook," stating, "It is difficult to see that the contents of the notebook are relevant to determining whether the President was enraged." Previously, Colonel Park's legal team had requested access to the records of the Noh Sangwon Notebook in order to verify the authenticity of the so-called "VIP rage theory."
The court also postponed its decision on whether to accept former President Yoon Suk-yeol as a witness, who was requested by Colonel Park's team, stating, "While there is some need to clarify the background of the order, the primary issue to be determined is whether there was an order from the Minister of National Defense or the Commander, and whether that order was lawful and legitimate."
At the first trial preparation hearing held on April 18, Colonel Park's legal team explained, "We also requested former President Yoon as a witness in the first trial. At that time, considering his status as the sitting president, we substituted a fact inquiry, but the response was insufficient, and the verdict did not address the relevant issue," explaining the reason for the witness request.
The court also denied Colonel Park's request to obtain, through a search and seizure, the investigation records of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials related to former Commander Kim, stating, "Once the investigation process has progressed to a certain extent, we will consider a request for document submission."
On this day, the court pointed out the lack of clarity in the charges, stating, "The application for permission to amend the indictment does not specify the order in question, so we cannot decide on permission today," in response to the military prosecutor's request to amend the indictment. The court will review the revised application and decide whether to permit the amendment at the first trial hearing scheduled for June 13.
The court scheduled additional trial dates for June 27 and July 11, and will conduct witness examinations of three individuals, including then-Commander Kim Gyehwan and then-Minister of National Defense Lee Jongseop. The court indicated that the hearings could be concluded by the end of July.
Colonel Park was brought to trial on charges of insubordination for allegedly disobeying the order of then-Marine Corps Commander Kim Gyehwan to withhold the transfer of investigation records regarding the death of Corporal Chae, which occurred on July 19, 2023, to the civilian police. He is also charged with defamation of a superior for allegedly distorting the statements of then-Minister of National Defense Lee Jongseop in media interviews, making it appear to the public as if Minister Lee had issued improper instructions.
In January, the Central District Military Court acquitted Colonel Park, stating, "There was no clear order to withhold the transfer at the time of the incident." The court also found that although there was an order from former Commander Kim to halt the transfer at the time of execution, this order was unjust and did not constitute insubordination. Colonel Park, who was removed from his post in August 2023, remained without a position during the investigation and trial, but after the first trial verdict, he was appointed as Deputy Chief of Personnel Administration at the Marine Corps in March.
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