Jo Hae-jin 'Distortion and Publication of Opinion Polls' Fined 1.5 Million Won with Suspended Sentence in First Trial

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Ju Cheol-in] Ahead of the 21st general election, the court gave a suspended sentence to People Power Party lawmaker Cho Hae-jin, who was prosecuted for distorting and publicizing poll results.

The Criminal Division 2 of the Miryang Branch of Changwon District Court (Chief Judge Maeng Jun-young) ruled this way at the sentencing hearing for Cho Hae-jin's violation of the Public Official Election Act on the afternoon of the day.

Accordingly, Rep. Cho will retain his seat. The court judged that the distortion remarks about the poll during his appearance on the YouTube channel Goseongguk TV in January 2019 were guilty.

The defendant claimed that he did not state poll results and that it was not intentional, but the court found sufficient evidence that the broadcast content could be understood as stating poll results including margin of error.

However, the court ruled that it is difficult to see that this report had a significant impact on voters' judgment or election results, and considering the defendant's reflection on his imprudent remarks during the trial process, sentenced him to a fine of 1.5 million won but suspended the sentence itself.

As Rep. Cho left the courtroom, he said, “I respect the court's ruling,” and “I will be more careful with my words and actions in the future, taking this incident as an opportunity.”

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