Former Representative Lee Jae-myung's Wife Kim Hye-kyung's 'Election Law Violation' Case First Trial Sentencing Postponed

Resumption of Arguments One Day Before the Sentencing Date on the 13th

The first trial verdict for Kim Hye-kyung, the spouse of former Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung, who is on trial for providing meals to spouses of current and former Democratic Party lawmakers during the 2021 Democratic Party presidential primary, has been postponed.

The Criminal Division 13 of Suwon District Court (Presiding Judge Park Jeong-ho) decided on the 12th to resume arguments in Kim's case involving violation of the Public Official Election Act and scheduled a pretrial hearing for 10 a.m. on the 22nd.

Kim Hye-kyung, wife of former Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung. / Suwon = Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

Originally, this trial had completed the closing arguments on the 25th of last month, and the verdict was scheduled for 2 p.m. on the 13th. However, a decision to resume arguments was made one day before the verdict date. The exact reason for the court's decision to resume arguments has not been disclosed, but after the closing arguments, the prosecution submitted a supplementary opinion to the court on the 30th of last month, and Kim's defense counsel submitted a statement on the 7th. The court issued an order to the prosecution to prepare for clarification when deciding to resume arguments. It is presumed that the court had additional matters to verify before reaching a final conclusion.

Since the defendant is not obligated to attend the pretrial hearing, Kim is expected not to appear in court on the 22nd. A new verdict date is expected to be set afterward.

Kim was prosecuted on charges of providing meals worth a total of 104,000 KRW on August 2, 2021, at a restaurant in Seoul to three spouses of current and former Democratic Party lawmakers, her driver, and aides, which is considered a donation act. This occurred after Lee’s declaration to run in the party’s presidential primary.

Kim’s side denied the charges in court, stating, "At the time, the defendant believed that the other attendees would each pay their own share, and the defendant was completely unaware that the meal expenses for the three attendees were paid using a Gyeonggi Province corporate card."

Kim Chil-jun, the attorney representing Kim, argued for her acquittal at the closing arguments on the 25th of last month, stating, "The defendant had no conspiracy with Bae Mo, and there is no direct or objective evidence to suggest such a conspiracy."

However, the prosecution argued, "This case involves Kim attempting to bribe spouses of influential senior and veteran Democratic Party politicians, including a four-term lawmaker and a former National Assembly Speaker, to ensure Lee’s election as the Democratic Party presidential candidate," and requested the court to sentence Kim to a fine of 3 million KRW.

The prosecution also appealed to the court to reflect in sentencing that "there are five confirmed donation acts by Kim as evidence, but the other four cases could not be prosecuted due to the statute of limitations."

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