2024-07-15 13:25:16
Argument to be concluded on the 25th
The defendant interrogation of Kim Hye-kyung, wife of Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, who was indicted on charges of treating Democratic Party members to meals with a Gyeonggi-do corporate card during the party’s primary for the last presidential election, has been canceled. This is because Kim announced that she would refuse to make any statements ahead of the defendant interrogation.
Suwon District Court Criminal Division 13 (Presiding Judge Park Jeong-ho) ruled as such on the 15th at the trial date for Kim’s charges of violating the Public Official Election Act, saying, “When two interests (the defendant’s questioning and the right to refuse to testify) conflict, the right to refuse to testify takes precedence, and in such a case, I believe it is correct in terms of the structure of the article to not proceed with the defendant’s questioning.”
Article 296-2 of the Criminal Procedure Act states that after the completion of the evidence examination, the prosecutor may question the defendant about the facts of the indictment and other necessary matters, and Article 283-2 stipulates that the defendant may not make a statement or may refuse to make a statement to individual questions. The court decided that the defendant’s right to refuse to make a statement has priority.
The court originally planned to conclude the evidence examination on this day and proceed with the defendant’s examination of Mr. Kim. However, before the examination, Mr. Kim’s attorney stated that he would exercise his right to remain silent regarding the defendant’s examination.
The defense attorney argued, “The defendant is currently being investigated by the Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office on charges of breach of trust related to card use, and he was summoned by the prosecution on the 4th. Considering the summons, his card use history, including this incident, is included, so he plans to refuse to answer any and all questions.” The attorney added, “It is a violation of the defendant’s right to remain silent for (the prosecution) to ask questions even though the truth cannot be revealed through the defendant’s examination.”
The prosecution then argued, “The defendant is currently denying many things, and we want to find out which parts are problematic and which are logically contradictory through the defendant’s questioning,” and “Even if he refuses to testify about the details of the questioning, we believe that his attitude, facial expression, and tone of speech are also important factors. We are doing this to fulfill our burden of proof.”
During the argument between the two sides, attorney Kim Chil-jun made a statement saying, “Even if you say you won’t make any statements, if you keep asking questions, I plan to file a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission,” but then withdrew this statement and apologized after the prosecutor objected.
After hearing both sides’ opinions sufficiently, the court decided not to proceed with the defendant’s examination after two adjournments and finally organizing its position, saying, “The defendant’s comprehensive right to remain silent was not considered in the previous trial.”
In response, the prosecution immediately raised an objection, saying, “We believe that not even being able to question someone because they refuse to do so goes against the article,” and “If the court makes this decision, (the prosecution) will not be able to present evidence to question a specific suspect in the future about what the suspect claims, what he or she thinks, or how he or she denies things.”
However, the court did not accept the prosecution’s argument that “all matters were reviewed.” Instead, it decided to record all of the prosecution’s objections and the court’s decision to dismiss the case in the records.
The court plans to conclude arguments in this case with final statements from both sides on the next hearing date, the 25th.
Kim was indicted on charges of providing 104,000 won worth of meal expenses to three people, including A, the spouse of a Democratic Party member of the National Assembly, and his driver and attendant, at a restaurant in Seoul on August 2, 2021, after Representative Lee declared his candidacy for the party’s presidential primary.
He denies the charges, saying he was unaware that payment was made with a corporate card.
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2024-07-15 13:25:16