Constitutional Court Dismisses Byun Heejae's Appeal Over 'Tablet PC Manipulation Allegations'

The Constitutional Court has dismissed the constitutional appeal filed by Byun Heejae, CEO of Media Watch (age 52), who was convicted and sentenced to prison for spreading false information related to the tablet PC report involving Choi Seo-won (formerly known as Choi Soon-sil).

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According to the legal community on the 23rd, the designated panel of the Constitutional Court rejected Byun's constitutional appeal on the 21st during the preliminary review, stating that "the grounds for filing are not applicable."

Previously, Byun was indicted on charges of disseminating false information alleging that JTBC conspired with former Blue House administrator Kim Hansoo to acquire the tablet PC, manipulated the files, and reported as if Choi Soon-sil had used it.

In the first trial in December 2018, the court found him guilty and sentenced him to two years in prison. Both the appeals court and the Supreme Court upheld this judgment.

Following this, on the 10th, Byun's side filed a constitutional appeal against the Supreme Court's decision, arguing that "the court violated the right to a fair trial by dismissing the request for evidence investigation without reasonable grounds."

Meanwhile, according to the Constitutional Court, since the introduction of the constitutional appeal system on March 12, up until the 21st of this month, approximately 350 cases have been dismissed during the preliminary review by the designated panel. No cases have been referred to the full bench.

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