'Son Proxy Exam Suspicion' Jo Guk's Side Requests US Professor as Witness

Prosecutors: "Clear Evidence of Intent to Delay Trial by 2-3 Months"
Court Sends Defendant and Prosecutors' Questions to Professor for Statement Evaluation

Regarding the ‘proxy exam suspicion’ involving the son of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk and his wife, the couple requested the court to summon a professor from George Washington University in the United States as a witness.

Former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk./Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

At the preparatory hearing held on the 13th, presided over by the Criminal Division 13 of the Seoul High Court (Chief Judges Kim Woo-su, Kim Jin-ha, and Lee In-su), Cho’s defense attorney stated, "Professor Jeffrey McDonald has expressed his willingness to appear in a Korean court and testify between February and March next year."

Previously, the first trial recognized the guilt of the couple’s son for the charge of obstruction of business by taking an online exam on behalf of him at George Washington University in 2016.

The defense explained, "Professor McDonald was surprised by the request to summon him as a witness and said, ‘Why is this a subject of a criminal trial?’ He offered to explain the school system he experienced and managed."

They added, "He said he could provide video testimony by November or January next year, but since he intends to appear in court in person, we hope the trial schedule proceeds in February next year."

On the other hand, the prosecution opposed, arguing that the court had already set the last trial date for the 18th of next month and that this was an attempt to delay the trial by two to three months. The prosecutor rebutted, "We need to determine whether this procedure is intended to delay the lawsuit," and added, "The obstruction of business charge is supported not only by testimony but also by clear objective evidence such as text messages, so the judgment will not be affected regardless of whether the witness is examined."

The court proposed a third option to send questions from both the defendant’s side and the prosecution to Professor McDonald and receive his answers in the form of written statements and opinions for judgment.

Cho’s defense argued, "Even with such a procedure, organizing and reflecting on the questions and receiving replies would be impossible by the 18th of next month and would take about two months."

The court stated, "Since the verdict will not be rendered immediately after the 18th of next month, if the reply comes within at least two months, we may conduct additional evidence investigation in a one-point session," and added, "Today, we have presented the court’s position, so please express your opinions, and we will make a final decision on whether to adopt it at the next hearing on the 20th."

Meanwhile, Professor Jeong Gyeong-sim, who was released on parole, volunteered to undergo defendant questioning in the second trial. Since her health has recovered after release and she has expressed a desire to clarify certain points, she requested a separate defendant questioning session to be scheduled.

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