Trial of ousted Park begins

Former President Park Geun-hye maintained her claim of innocence via attorneys at the first hearing of her trial Tuesday, signaling a tough battle against the corruption charges that brought an end to her presidency in March.

The Seoul Central District Court held the preliminary hearing and set May 23 as the start date for a formal trial that Park, who has remained in custody since late March, must attend. She did not appear this time as her attendance was not mandatory.

During the hearing, Park’s lawyer Yoo Young-ha said he would formally state Park’s position on the charges in future proceedings, saying he needs more time to review the prosecution’s 12,000-page investigation records.

Park was indicted last month on a total of 18 charges including bribery, abuse of power and leaking government secrets in connection with the corruption scandal that removed her from office and triggered the earlier-than-scheduled May 9 election.

Once the trial officially begins, Park will sit side by side in the courtroom with her longtime friend Choi Soon-sil and Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin, who were indicted as accomplices in the bribery scheme.

The prosecution suspects that Park solicited or was promised to receive bribes totaling 59.2 billion won ($52.4 million) from three local firms -- Samsung, Lotte and SK -- in the guise of donations for entities controlled by Choi in return for policy favors.

The prosecution filed charges against Choi for receiving bribes and Lotte tycoon Shin for offering kickbacks.

Choi asked the bench to separate her trial from Park’s through her lawyer, citing emotional distress in facing Park in the same courtroom.

“Choi is feeling a sense of shame in that she made ex-President Park, who she has respected and stood by for years, stand trial,” Choi’s lawyer Lee Kyung-jae said.

But the court killed the possibility, saying it is “inevitable” for them to stand trial together as they have about 140 witnesses in common.

The next preparatory hearing was set for May 16. A preliminary hearing is held to review the charges and draw a timeline for future proceedings.

Apart from the bribery charges, Park has been charged with extorting 77.4 billion won from local firms for the Choi-controlled foundations. She is also accused of abusing her authority to help Choi’s business interests, exclude artists critical of Park from state support and sack government officials who refused to aid or abet her wrongdoings. Another major charge is leaking government secrets to Choi.

If convicted of bribery, which carries the heaviest punishment among all the charges, Park could be sentenced to life imprisonment or a term of at least 10 years.

Through the six-month probe into the corruption scandal, the prosecution indicted about 30 people including Choi, former presidential aides, ex-ministers and Samsung Group’s de facto chief Lee Jae-yong in connection with the corruption scandal.

Park was expelled from office on March 10, with less than a year remaining in her five-year term, in a unanimous decision by the Constitutional Court to finalize her parliamentary impeachment over the corruption scandal.

Park, who was the first woman to reach the highest office in South Korea, is the third president to face trial on criminal charges, following Roh Tae-woo and Chun Doo-hwan.

By Ock Hyun-ju (laeticia.ock@heraldcorp.com)