Former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun Requests Change of Court in Insurrection Case

Kim Yong-hyun's legal team has filed a request to change the court handling the additional charges against him by the special investigation team for insurrection. On June 23, attorney Yoo Seung-soo announced that they have submitted a motion to disqualify all members of the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 34. He stated that, according to criminal procedure law, the hearing process should be immediately halted. This court was scheduled to hold a hearing on the necessity of Kim's detention at 2:30 PM on the 23rd, just days before his initial detention period expires on June 26.

Kim's defense argues that setting a hearing date for the warrant without proper notification of the indictment is unlawful and infringes upon Kim's right to a fair trial and the right of his attorney to defend him. The disqualification request is submitted to the court in question, and under current law, if there is clear intent to delay proceedings, the court may dismiss the request outright. Alternatively, the case may be transferred to another court for review, during which time the trial will be paused.

The special prosecutor, Cho Eun-seok, who is investigating insurrection and foreign exchange charges against former President Yoon Suk-yeol and others, added new charges against Kim on June 18. These include allegations of obstructing official duties through deception and instructing the destruction of evidence. Specifically, Kim is accused of deceiving the Presidential Security Service to obtain a secure phone on December 2 of last year and later handing it to former civilian intelligence chief Roh Sang-won, as well as instructing his secretary to eliminate materials related to the martial law on December 5.

Kim's legal team expressed their opposition to the additional charges, stating that the so-called Insurrection Special Investigation Act prohibits the filing of charges during the investigation preparation period. They criticized the special prosecutor for proceeding with the indictment without reviewing existing investigation records, claiming it was an attempt to secure Kim's release before his detention period ends.