The appeals verdict for former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, indicted on charges of engaging in key tasks of insurrection related to the Dec. 3 martial law declaration, will be delivered on Nov. 7. It marks the first appeals ruling among Yoon Suk-yeol administration cabinet members put on trial over the martial law incident. A first-instance verdict is also scheduled for Nov. 8 on charges of occupational manslaughter against former Marine Corps 1st Division Commander Lim Sung-geun, the top-ranking commander of the unit to which the late Marine Corporal Chae Su-geun belonged at the time of his death. This is the first indictment brought to trial by the Marine special counsel team launched in November last year.
According to legal sources on Monday, the Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 12-1 (judges Lee Seung-cheol, Cho Jin-gu and Kim Min-ah), the dedicated insurrection trial bench, will hold the appeals verdict hearing for Han's case on Nov. 7 on charges including engaging in key tasks of insurrection.
Han was indicted on charges of failing to prevent and aiding the unlawful martial law declaration, despite having a duty as prime minister to check the president's arbitrary abuse of authority. The appeals court will also rule on allegations that Han signed, along with former President Yoon and former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, a post-facto declaration document drafted by former Presidential Secretariat Deputy Chief Kang Eui-gu to remedy legal defects in the initial martial law declaration after its lifting, and then discarded it.
The Seoul Central District Court in January convicted Han on charges including engaging in key tasks of insurrection and sentenced him to 23 years in prison. That was eight years longer than the 15-year term sought by the insurrection special counsel team. At the final appeals hearing on Oct. 7, the Cho Eun-seok insurrection special counsel team again sought a 23-year sentence for Han.
The special counsel team pointed out that Han has continued to deny the crimes in the appeals proceedings and has consistently taken the stance that he does not remember the circumstances at the time. It argued that guilty verdicts should also be handed down on some of the charges of engaging in key tasks of insurrection and the charge of using a falsely prepared official document, which were acquitted in the first trial.
By contrast, Han reiterated in his closing statement at the final appeals hearing that he had no prior knowledge of the martial law declaration and did not go along with it. "I tried to persuade him multiple times, but former President Yoon did not listen to me or other cabinet members," he said. "As prime minister at the time, I feel an infinite sense of responsibility before the people and history." Han was seen in tears during his remarks.
The first-instance verdict for Lim, identified as the person responsible for Corporal Chae's death, will be delivered on Nov. 8. The Lee Myung-hyun special counsel team on the deceased Marine has asked the court to sentence Lim to five years in prison. Lim was the senior unit commander of Corporal Chae, who died on July 19, 2023, at a flood disaster site in Yecheon County, North Gyeongsang Province. He was indicted on charges of neglecting his duty to ensure safety by, among other things, ordering underwater searches without providing safety equipment such as life jackets.
