Im Sang-min Minister Impeachment Case over 'Itaewon Disaster' to Fully Proceed from Next Month 9

The preliminary procedures for the impeachment trial filed against Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min regarding the Itaewon disaster response were completed on the 18th. The Constitutional Court concluded the preparatory hearing and decided to hold the full trial starting on the 9th of next month. From the trial date onward, the full bench of nine justices will participate. The preparatory hearing was handled by a panel of three justices, including the presiding Justice Lee Jong-seok, along with Justices Moon Hyung-bae and Lee Mi-seon.

Moon Hyung-bae (from left), Lee Jong-seok, and Lee Mi-sun, Constitutional Court Justices, are present at the second preparatory hearing for the impeachment case against Lee Sang-min, Minister of the Interior and Safety, held on the afternoon of the 18th at the Small Courtroom of the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

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On the afternoon of the same day, the Constitutional Court held the second preparatory hearing for the impeachment case against Minister Lee in the small courtroom of the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul. The preparatory hearing is a procedure to organize the issues of the case and discuss the acceptance of evidence and witnesses requested by the petitioner, the National Assembly, and the respondent, Minister Lee, before the main trial begins. Neither the petitioner nor the respondent is required to attend in person, so only their representatives appeared at the hearing.

The National Assembly cited violations of Article 34, Paragraph 6 of the Constitution (the state's obligation to prevent disasters and protect citizens), Article 10, and the Framework Act on the Management of Disasters and Safety (Articles 4 Paragraph 1, 22, 23, 25-2, 34-8, etc.) regarding the failure to take prior disaster prevention measures, as well as violations of Article 56 of the State Public Officials Act concerning the duty of diligence, as grounds for impeachment against Minister Lee.

During the hearing, opinions were heard from both the National Assembly and Minister Lee's side on whether to accept the bereaved families and survivors as witnesses, the necessity of an on-site inspection of the disaster scene, and whether the Minister of the Interior and Safety receives reports and issues instructions during large-scale gatherings.

The National Assembly requested eight witnesses, including representatives of the bereaved families and survivors. The National Assembly argued, "Since the representatives of the bereaved families and survivors directly experienced that the fire and police personnel failed to conduct rescues, their testimonies can directly and indirectly confirm that the respondent had no role."

On the other hand, Minister Lee's side countered that some of the requested witnesses had already appeared in the National Assembly's state audit, resulting in duplication. Minister Lee's side stated, "There are overlaps between the witnesses requested by the petitioner and those who appeared during the National Assembly's state audit. We question the necessity of hearing duplicate testimonies. Survivors and bereaved families will testify about the lack of coordinated response during the recovery and response phases, but we believe that legal testimonies from the bereaved families are inappropriate."

The court summarized that it would review the necessity of witness examination after examining related investigation records and then decide whether to accept the witnesses.

Regarding the necessity of an on-site inspection, the National Assembly argued that an inspection of the width and slope of the alley at the disaster site, the structure and location of surrounding roads, and the distances between the disaster site, Itaewon police station, and the 119 safety center was necessary. The National Assembly explained, "It is impossible to verify from photos alone what roles the on-site rescue personnel played until the large-scale disaster occurred in the narrow alley, and whether the damage could have been mitigated if emergency rescue had been promptly conducted, so we propose an on-site investigation."

However, Minister Lee's side rebutted that the width and slope of the disaster site had been disclosed, and the distances to the police station and safety center were publicly available online, so an on-site inspection was unnecessary. Minister Lee's side explained, "The National Assembly already conducted an on-site inspection through a state audit before the impeachment resolution. How could the Minister of the Interior and Safety know the width and slope of venues for events held nationwide?"

Regarding whether the Minister of the Interior and Safety receives reports and issues specific instructions during large-scale gatherings or events, the Constitutional Court previously requested Minister Lee's side to confirm whether: the Minister received reports and issued instructions to prevent safety accidents related to the Halloween festival; the Ministry of the Interior and Safety receives prior work reports or issues preventive instructions for events with large crowds; and whether police forces were deployed to the event site on the day of the disaster due to a large-scale gathering.

In response, Minister Lee's side stated that the Minister did not receive direct reports regarding the Halloween festival and that for events without organizers like the Halloween festival, the Minister neither received reports nor gave instructions. They also said that the Minister has no authority to receive reports from or issue instructions to the police regarding police deployment.

The court concluded the preparatory procedures on this day and plans to proceed with the trial sessions involving all nine justices from the full bench starting on the 9th of next month.

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