한동훈 국민의힘 Chairman Acquitted in ‘Judicial Power Abuse’ Case: Breaking News

Breaking News: 한동훈 국민의힘 Chairman Acquitted in ‘Judicial Power Abuse’ Case

Source: 경향신문

한동훈, Chairman of the ruling party 국민의힘, has been acquitted in the first trial of the ‘judicial power abuse’ case. The verdict was announced by Seoul Central District Court.

한동훈 stated, “The investigation into the judicial power abuse case was conducted based on a request from the Supreme Court.” He further emphasized that he was involved in the investigation as the person responsible, along with President Yoon Seok-yeol.

During his arrival at the 국민의힘 party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, 한동훈 responded to questions from reporters regarding the acquittal in the ‘judicial power abuse’ case. He expressed caution in discussing the ongoing investigation, stating, “It would be inappropriate to comment on the current situation when the person involved in the investigation has already left their position.” 한동훈 added, “There are various points to consider, and I believe there will be further evaluations in the future.”

The 35th Criminal Division of Seoul Central District Court also delivered a verdict of acquittal to former Chief Justices 양 and former Court Administration Director 임정택 and 민소영.

The court acknowledged that there were facts indicating the illegal and unfair intervention of the Court Administration during 양’s tenure as Chief Justice. However, it concluded that 양 did not directly order such intervention.

The investigation into the ‘judicial power abuse’ case was initiated in June 2018. At the time, 한, who was the 3rd Deputy Prosecutor General of Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, was in charge of the investigation, under the direction of President Yoon Seok-yeol. 한, who was initially critical of the investigation, later became the leader of 국민의힘, resulting in a change in his position. He described the initiation of the investigation as a result of a request from the Supreme Court, rather than the will of the prosecution, and stated that there would be further evaluations in the future. 국민의힘 spokesperson 정광재 previously criticized the ‘judicial power abuse’ case, claiming that it was a process to control the judiciary during the tenure of former Chief Justice Kim Myeong-su under the Moon Jae-in administration.

The ‘judicial power abuse’ case began in February 2017 with the resignation of 이탄희, who was a judge at the time and is currently a member of the ruling Democratic Party. 이탄희 resigned after receiving instructions from 양, the former Chief Justice, to prepare measures to cancel or reduce the International Human Rights Law Symposium organized by the Court Administration. This incident was reported by 경향신문 in March of that year. In April of the same year, 경향신문 reported allegations of a ‘judge blacklist’ in which the Supreme Court allegedly identified the tendencies and trends of specific judges to impose disadvantages in their careers.

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