The hearing, originally scheduled for later this week, has now been pushed back to June 18, about two weeks after the snap presidential election set for early June, to fill a power vacuum caused by the impeachment of disgraced former President Yoon Suk Yeol early last month over his botched martial law debacle last year.
The decision comes after a request earlier in the day from Lee's lawyer to postpone the trial, along with several other trials in which he is involved.
The court explained the rescheduling was made to "ensure equal opportunities for campaigning to all candidates" ahead of the June 3 election and to "avoid any controversy over the fairness of the trial."
The case stems from comments made by Lee during a TV debate and a parliamentary audit in 2021, when he was running for president.
In the first trial in November last year, Lee was found guilty of making false statements related to a major scandal involving a land development project in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province during his tenure as the city's mayor from 2010 to 2018. However, about four months later, a high court overturned the lower court's sentence of a suspended prison term.
Last week, the case took another twist, as the Supreme Court, in an unusual move, expedited the case and referred it back to the appeals court on the grounds of a guilty verdict, in a televised ruling.
However, the appellate court gave in by deciding to defer the case, as the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) threatened to impeach the top court's Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae and other justices, citing procedural issues in the handling of the case and claiming it as an interference in the presidential election.
Nevertheless, the postponement of the trial is unlikely to bring this contentious saga to a close, as the DP, keeping all possibilities open, has already drafted a slew of bills aimed at shielding its presidential candidate from legal risks, a move that may face fierce resistance. Moreover, if Lee wins the election and is later found guilty, that could spark fresh debates over the legitimacy of his presidency.
reporter
Im Yoon-seo
lyseo0330@ajupress.com
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