Court Error Sends Kim Da-woon Trial for ‘Lee Hee-jin Parents Murder’ Back to Square One

Omission of Jury Trial Consent Procedure in First Trial
Life Imprisonment Sentenced in First Trial but Procedural Defect Found in Appeal

On March 26 last year, Kim Da-woon, the suspect in the 'Lee Hee-jin Parents Murder' case, is coming out of Anyang Dongan Police Station in Gyeonggi Province on the afternoon of the 26th to be transferred to the prosecution. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] The trial of Kim Da-woon (35), who was sentenced to life imprisonment in the first trial for the murder and disposal of the bodies of the parents of Lee Hee-jin (34), known as the "Cheongdam-dong stock millionaire," has been restarted from scratch due to the first trial court's omission of the jury trial confirmation procedure.

The Criminal Division 1 of the Suwon High Court (Presiding Judge Noh Kyung-pil) overturned the original life sentence verdict at the appeal trial held on the 6th for Kim, who was charged with robbery-murder, corpse disposal, and conspiracy to commit robbery, and remanded the case to the Anyang branch of the Suwon District Court.

The court stated, "This case involved a procedural violation in the first trial regarding the failure to ask the defendant about their intention to request a jury trial in relation to the consolidated cases."

It added, "The appellate court thoroughly reviewed various ways to resolve this issue, but since the defendant's intention to request a jury trial was clear, the case is being sent back to the first trial court in accordance with the Supreme Court's position. We apologize to the victims and their bereaved families present here for the need to retry the case due to the court's error."

Due to procedural defects during the first trial, all previous proceedings in Kim's trial have effectively been nullified.

In September of last year, just before the sentencing trial for Kim's charges of robbery-murder and others, the prosecution additionally indicted Kim on conspiracy to commit robbery, and the two cases were subsequently consolidated for trial.

According to the Act on the Participation of the People in Criminal Trials, the court must confirm with the defendant whether they wish to have a jury trial for each case. However, the first trial court failed to ask Kim about his intention to request a jury trial during the consolidation process of the newly indicted conspiracy charge.

Despite this procedural violation, the trial proceeded, and in March, Kim was sentenced to life imprisonment.

During the appeal trial, Kim expressed his intention to request a jury trial in a written opinion submitted at the final hearing on the 10th of last month. The appellate court confirmed the existence of a significant procedural defect in the first trial and issued the ruling to overturn and remand the case.

Kim was indicted for killing Lee’s parents on the afternoon of February 25 last year at an apartment in Anyang City, fleeing with 500 million won in cash and a luxury foreign car.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.