Prosecution Requests Recusal of Judge in Cho Kuk and Jung Kyung-shim Trial... "Biased Proceedings"

Former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk is attending the continued trial on his children's admission bribery case at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the 14th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The prosecution filed a motion to disqualify the judge in protest against the court's decision to exclude the PC from the Dongyang University lounge as evidence in the trial concerning the 'admission fraud involving the children' of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk and his wife.

On the 14th, during the continuation trial of former Minister Cho and his wife held at the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 21-2 (Presiding Judge Seongyoung Ma), the prosecution filed the motion, stating, "It appears that the court is making a biased conclusion against the defendants and conducting the trial accordingly." Due to the prosecution's motion to disqualify, the scheduled witness examination was not conducted, and the trial ended after about an hour.

Earlier, on the 24th of last month, the court decided not to admit as evidence the data from the PC in the Dongyang University lounge and the PC belonging to former Minister Cho's son. This decision was based on a Supreme Court precedent stating that "if the victim of illegal filming voluntarily submits the suspect's mobile phone to the investigative agency without guaranteeing the suspect's right to participate, it is illegal."

In court that day, the prosecution countered, saying, "This is an unlawful and improper decision based on a misinterpretation of the Supreme Court precedent," and added, "Whether the investigation procedure was illegal should be considered based on the circumstances at the time the act was committed, but the court rejected evidence that was lawfully collected on the grounds that it did not do something practically impossible." However, the court dismissed the prosecution's objection.

Ultimately, the prosecution took the drastic step of filing a motion to disqualify the judge, and as a result, the trial of former Minister Cho and his wife has been suspended until the court issues a ruling on the motion. According to the Criminal Procedure Act, a motion to replace the judge can be filed when there is concern that the judge may conduct an unfair trial. In such cases, the court must hold a separate trial to decide on the motion itself. The motion to disqualify is reviewed by a separate panel of judges.

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