"'Valley Murder' Lee Eun-hae Requests Trial Suspension... 'Need to Prepare for Omission Murder Issue'"

'Valley Murder' Defendants Lee Eun-hae and Jo Hyun-soo [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] The defense attorneys of Lee Eunhae (31) and Jo Hyunsoo (30), who are on trial for the "valley murder" case, have requested the court to suspend the trial proceedings.

Their joint defense counsel stated at the 14th hearing held on the 20th at the Incheon District Court Criminal Division 15 (Presiding Judge Lee Gyuhun), "Since the charge of murder by omission has been added, preparation regarding the related issues is necessary."

Earlier, the prosecution had applied to amend the indictment to include the charge of "murder by omission" alongside the existing charge of "murder by commission" against Lee and Jo, and the court accepted this amendment at the 13th hearing on the 1st.

The law defines "commission" as directly carrying out a prohibited act, and "omission" as failing to perform an act that one ought to do. Generally, when murder by commission is recognized as guilty, the sentence is much heavier than for murder by omission.

The defense attorneys of Lee and others said, "Due to the indictment amendment, it is necessary to review the duty to rescue, which had not been a major issue so far," adding, "It is necessary to hear from firefighters who responded to the scene and the pension owner, and since we are relying only on witness statements, we also request an on-site inspection."

However, the prosecution requested the court to dismiss the suspension application, stating, "Sufficient examination has been conducted during the witness questioning process."

In response, Presiding Judge Lee said, "It is necessary to consider this from the perspective of guaranteeing the right to defense due to the indictment amendment," and added, "If the defense and prosecution submit their final opinions in writing, I will review and decide."

Regarding the request for an on-site inspection, the judge said, "It is not something that can only be known by going to the site; a map and other materials should be sufficient," and "If necessary, please record a video and submit it as evidence," thus not accepting the request.

If the court permits the suspension of the trial proceedings requested by the defense, the next hearing originally scheduled for 10 a.m. on the 22nd of this month will be postponed.

Lee was arrested and indicted on charges including the murder of her husband A (39 years old at the time of death) on June 30, 2019, at around 8:24 p.m. in Yongsogye Valley, Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi Province, together with her lover Jo.

The prosecution believes that they killed A, who could not swim, by forcing him to jump from a 4-meter-high rock into a 3-meter-deep valley pool without any rescue equipment.

They are also accused of attempting to kill A in February and May of the same year by feeding him food mixed with pufferfish poison and by drowning him in a fishing pond.

Lee and Jo disappeared before the prosecution's second investigation on December 14 last year and were arrested by the police on the 16th of last month at an officetel near Samsong Station in Goyang City, Gyeonggi Province, after four months on the run.

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