The court in charge of Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party, regarding the Daejang-dong incident is changing.
The presiding judge, Director General Kim Dong-hyun, is likely to move the court within the Seoul Central District Court. All associate judges have been confirmed to be replaced. Accordingly, the deliberation period for the Daejang-dong trial is expected to be extended. When the members of the court change, they will follow the legal procedure to renew the trial and then re-examine the case, which will require reviewing and verifying the main evidence gathered during the past two years of the Daejang-dong trial.
The Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 33 (Director General Kim Dong-hyun) held a hearing on the Daejang-dong, Baekhyeon-dong, and Wirye New Town development corruption and Seongnam FC case on the 18th and conducted a witness examination of former Seongnam Urban Development Corporation Planning Director Yoo Dong-kyu.
After completing the witness examination, Director General Kim noted, "I applied for a personnel transfer, and usually if I remain I am informed about it," adding, "Although it is before the announcement of the division of work, I haven't been told anything, so I consider it highly likely that the presiding judge will change."
He also said, "If the court changes, there will be a renewal procedure, so I do not know how the trial will proceed," and added, "I will set the next date for March 4."
Whether the presiding judge will be replaced according to the court's work distribution will be decided later this week. It has already been determined that both associate judges will be changed. As of the 24th, Judge Ahn Geun-hong is expected to move to the Daegu District Court and Daegu Family Court Sangju Branch, while Judge Kim Tae-hyung will go to the Busan High Court.
When the new court is formed, it will go through the trial renewal process. According to the Criminal Procedure Act, if the members of the court are changed, both sides must re-confirm their positions regarding the charges and undergo a new evidence examination.
Earlier, in February of last year, all associate judges except for the presiding judge of Criminal Division 33 were replaced, and the renewal process was conducted for more than a month.
Meanwhile, the prosecution previously indicted Lee on March 22, 2023, for the 'Wirye New Town, Daejang-dong, Seongnam FC suspicions,' and added charges related to Baekhyeon-dong on October 12 of that year.