Cho Kuk Warns Kim Keon Hee Could Be Freed if Supreme Court Misses October Deadline

Cho Kuk says Kim Keon Hee could walk free in less than two months if the Supreme Court does not rule in her case by Oct. 28.

Cho, head of the Korea Innovation Party’s policy research institute, wrote on Facebook that Kim’s detention period would expire on that date. He said the case was unexpectedly referred to the Supreme Court’s full bench on July 23, one day before the scheduled ruling, calling the move unusual.

According to Cho, a full-bench hearing normally requires the participation of all Supreme Court justices except the chief justice. Two seats are currently vacant, and he said it was uncertain whether both would be filled within the remaining two months.

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We must keep our eyes wide open to see whether the Supreme Court might allow Kim Keon Hee to regain her freedom in two months.

Cho expressed suspicion about the court’s handling of the case. He pointed to its previous decision in Lee Jae-myung’s case during the presidential election period, saying the court had overturned and remanded the case on grounds that effectively favored a conviction and harmed Lee. Cho said it was clear that Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae and the other justices in the majority did not want Lee to become president.

He also said the Supreme Court had opposed the introduction of constitutional complaints against court decisions and an expansion of the number of Supreme Court justices since Lee’s government began. “We must keep our eyes wide open to see whether the Supreme Court might allow Kim Keon Hee to regain her freedom in two months,” Cho wrote.

The Court Organization Act allows the Supreme Court’s full bench to exercise jurisdiction when at least two-thirds of all 14 justices attend. A nominee for one vacant seat has been sent back for reconsideration by Lee, while the nomination to replace another justice is awaiting a parliamentary confirmation hearing.

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The Supreme Court justices who stood with Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae in the majority clearly did not want Lee Jae-myung to become president.