[Issue Plus] Kim Ho-joong was sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison in the first trial..."Not responsible, not guilty"

■ Host: Lee Yeo-jin, anchor Jang Won-seok
■ Starring: Lawyer Lee Go-eun

* The text below may differ from the actual broadcast content, so please check the broadcast for more accurate information. Please specify [YTN News PLUS] when quoting.

[Anchor]
As you saw, singer Kim Ho-joong was sentenced to two and a half years in prison by the first trial court.

[Anchor]
Let me check with lawyer Lee Go-eun about the major incident accident. Please come in.

[Anchor]
Now, Kim Ho-joong, he was accused of hitting and running under the influence of the public, but when he was indicted, he was excluded from the charge of drinking. Nevertheless, you were sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison, how did you see it?


The sentence came out very serious. Especially in the case of singer Kim Ho-joong, even though he is a first-time offender, if you look at the details of the ruling, it is common for the victim and the victim to not exceed 5 million won in settlement for an injury case within two weeks, but he paid a huge settlement of 60 million won and even submitted an appeal to the court for leniency. These reports are coming out. Nevertheless, it is very unusual to be sentenced to prison, but I think the sentence and two and a half years are very high.

[Anchor]
According to the report of the court's criticism, he made an excuse that was difficult to understand even though there was CCTV. There is a point that he admitted responsibility belatedly, but anyway, he interfered with the police investigation and falsely told the investigative agency by sending someone else to the investigation agency, and how do you see this judgment that various commonly called crimes of disgust have been applied?


It's seen as a punishment. In this case, obstruction of justice and waste of investigative power could have been very lenient if Kim Ho-joong had actually dealt with it according to the due process. Because he agreed with the victim and admitted all his charges at the trial stage.

However, in order not to be caught, the court seems to have considered these actions very guilty, leaving a phone recording of a low-ranking, very weak-ranking former manager to hide his crimes.

Also, the part that the court criticized earlier is why they denied this part even though CCTV clearly revealed that their walking condition was very staggered and drunk and normal driving was impossible. Because one of the main sentences, one of the main crimes, is the dangerous driving death penalty. Therefore, it is dangerous driving death to injure a person by driving while driving normally, but then there is a standard for the court to judge whether normal driving was possible or not.

It seems to be one point that the court is questioning whether he is seriously reflecting on his actions and actions at the time, even though CCTV clearly shows him stumbling.

[Anchor]
Today, Kim Ho-joong's lawyer left after saying, "I'm sorry," when asked by reporters whether he plans to appeal after the sentence. How likely do you think it is to appeal?


In the case of defendant Kim Ho-joong, it seems highly likely that he will appeal. Even though I'm not Kim Ho-joong's lawyer right now, I'm saying that it's a very high sentence, but as a lawyer in charge of the defendant, I'm likely to have advised him that he will be sentenced to probation today.

However, I think I only left a short story of sorry today because the appeal can be expressed after confirming the intention of appeal through a visit with the defendant. But speaking of a lawyer, in fact, one of the things that was very popular during the investigation stage was that Kim Ho-joong formed a former lawyer.

However, what the viewers should have known is that they have formed a luxurious former lawyers, but the sentence does not reflect that. Since the sentence came out as much as he did wrong, I think this is something we should look at once more.

[Anchor]
Despite this being a first-time offender, a serious sentence of two and a half years was handed down, but another example is actor Park Sang-min, famous as the general's son, who was caught drunk driving three times and received a six-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, and suspended for driving three times. I think it's very different from that.


In the case of actor Park Sang-min, it's simple drinking. In the case of Kim Ho-joong, didn't you run away despite drinking and causing an accident? And the crime itself is different because he even tried to cover up his crime. In the case of actor Park Sang-min, it is the third drinking incident, of course, but the last incident was in 1997 and 2011, so it is a case much more than a decade later.

And in the case of actor Park Sang-min, the blood alcohol level was very high due to this incident. 0. Although it was more than 1%, it was a simple drinking case in which a resident found that he was sleeping in his car because he was drunk, so if you think about it, you can't judge him on the same basis.

[Anchor]
However, the CEO of Kim Ho-joong's agency was also sentenced to two years in prison.


That's right. He was sentenced to two years in prison. In addition, the head of the headquarters was sentenced to one and a half years in prison. So, the only one who is currently on probation is the manager. The reason for this is that the justice department seems to have seen the nature of the crime as very bad for pressuring the weakest person as a manager using the high rank of representative and general manager.

In addition, I think I saw that the illegality was so poor that all three of them were sentenced to prison in the same way that they conspired and consulted with each other in dodging criminals like this.

[Anchor]
Kim Ho-joong is known to have submitted a letter of apology to the court three times. Of course, I'll appeal for leniency. These are the reasons for the commutation if you look at the previous trials. But I don't think this has been applied this time.


The sentencing factor is not whether the letter of apology itself is a reason for taking into account the sentencing, but whether you confess and reflect on the charges you have seen. Usually, not only Kim Ho-joong but also ordinary defendants write letters of apology 30 times, not 3 times. It doesn't look like this because it's taken into account as a reason for the commutation even if it's paid three times. In fact, it has been reported that Kim Ho-joong's fans have also submitted a lot of petitions to the court, and those parts are only one reason for consideration, and the sentence is not necessarily guaranteed.

[Anchor]
As I said earlier, the court seemed to criticize very harshly, but didn't you stop by the convenience store again to buy beer after you ran away irresponsibly? Given this overall attitude, it is questionable whether there is any guilt at all, so the letter of apology seems to have had little effect.


That's right. As many of you may remember, Kim Ho-joong denied the charges during the police investigation phase. Because after finishing the performance that he had contracted with, he admitted to the charges and cooperated with the investigation. I think this part was also seen as a reason for sentencing, and whether you came to admit it or cooperated with the investigation from the beginning is a very important part of deciding the sentence. I think the justice department also saw that part accurately.

[Anchor]
Would the sentence have been higher if the drunk driving charge was included? I don't think so. It seems that it has already been reflected in the sentence. In fact, wasn't the prosecution charged with drunk driving?

It's not because I didn't drink, but because I'm already drunk, I don't think the court would have proven this concentration accurately if I measured the blood alcohol level using the reverse calculation method, so I excluded that part. However, I think all of these are already reflected in the sentence because the prosecution admitted to the charge of causing injury to the victim while he was drunk and could not drive normally.

[Anchor]
You said earlier that you think you will appeal, but is there a possibility that your sentence will be reduced in the second trial? [Lee Go-eun] It is true that the sentence came out higher than the average standard. But isn't Kim Ho-joong a public figure in the court? He is a public figure and despite the fact that reports have continued in real-time since the incident first occurred, his attempt to conceal this evidence by continuing his performance has been made public to many people.

I think the sentence came out a little high because all of these parts were reflected. In the second trial, it is common to respect the original sentence of the first trial. We don't lower the sentence without any special changes in circumstances. Kim Ho-joong has already done all the leniency he can.

We agreed with the victim for a considerable amount of money. In addition, since he confessed and admitted it, it seems that there is no change in the circumstances of the reason for the sentencing that can be created in the second trial. So the sentence stays in place. In
I'm expecting it to be decided.

[Anchor]
If I appeal the second trial, can it be increased further by applying a crime of disgust to the second trial?


In order to increase the sentence in the second trial, it is impossible for the defendant to appeal alone. The prosecution must appeal together to be sentenced higher than the sentence of the first trial. So what we have to wait and see is that the defendant, Kim Ho-joong, is very likely to appeal in my opinion. I think we need to see if the prosecution can increase this sentence by appealing together.

[Anchor]
Then, the general manager identified only by his surname Jeon, is 1 year and 6 months, and the representative is 2 years. Is there a possibility that the sentences of these figures will be lowered?


I think the possibility of lowering it together is low. Because, as I said earlier, all of them have already been agreed with the victim. In particular, the head of the headquarters or the representative is a criminal evacuation teacher. The victim of the criminal evacuation teacher is the state. Since we can't agree with the state, I think it's unlikely that the sentence for this part will be lowered.

[Anchor]
Now, after Kim Ho-joong's incident, the whole nation has learned how to drink. That's why a lot of copycat crimes came out. To prevent this, the so-called Kim Ho-jung Prevention Act was also released, but it will be handled at the plenary session tomorrow?


That's right. In fact, in the case of non-compliance with a breathalyzer test, if you ask for a breathalyzer test, isn't it subject to criminal punishment? However, in fact, this is the reason why the court sentenced Kim Ho-joong to such a high prison sentence.

Even though he/she is a very popular celebrity and what he/she did can affect the whole people, he/she revealed the so-called "drunkering" method to the whole people and increased the possibility of copycat crimes. So, if the prevention law is really passed and legislated, the core content is that if it interferes with the investigative agency's legitimate alcohol measurement by drinking again like Kim Ho-joong, it will be punished with the same sentence as non-compliance with the alcohol measurement.

[Anchor]
Let's also look at the next topic. Yang Kwang-joon, 38, an active lieutenant colonel who damaged the body after killing a fellow military officer. Personal information was released today. What do you think is the reason why the court rejected Yang's request for an injunction for suspension of personal information?


The reason for dismissing the provisional injunction is that there is no irreparable damage. Because in the case of the crime in this case, the suspect is now admitting all of his charges. The criminal method is very brutal. Therefore, even if personal information is disclosed, the risk of damage that is difficult to recover is low. In addition, the court rejected the request for provisional injunction, saying there was no urgent need to predict damage.

[Anchor]
But isn't Yang Kwang-joon known as the father of two children? But, of course, I'm worried that my family will suffer a lot, so what do you think?


That's right. Of course, it was the suspect's fault. And it is not right for the suspect to be punished for the crime he did wrong, even his family members. However, what we need to think about is that the victim and the victim's bereaved family should also consider it.

It is also seen as a case that could be subject to personal information disclosure in that he committed this crime as an active duty soldier and as an officer, not just killed, but abandoned the body and tried to cover up the crime. I think we've considered all of these things.

In addition, the police asked the victim's bereaved family's position when the personal information disclosure review committee was held. However, according to the police's announcement, the victim's bereaved family also agreed to disclose their personal information. I think it's an open decision that considers the victim's position.

[Anchor]
The suspect, Yang Kwang-joon, has consistently argued that it was an accidental crime, but the police don't seem to see it like that.


That's right. Wasn't the police sent to the prosecution today? At the same time, the police also briefed on the investigation. During the briefing, we said that our police judged the crime in this case as a planned crime. The reason for this was that Yang Kwang-joon searched the vehicle forgery number plate before the crime.

So, in the case of Yang Kwang-joon, he said that it was an accidental crime and that he had no intention of killing it, but the police announced that he had changed his statement when the police pointed the search at him during the investigation. So the reason for falsifying that license plate was to brutally kill this victim and then abandon this body, right?

When he went to Hwacheon when he played the game, he was worried that he would be identified if his vehicle had the same license plate, so he engraved his vehicle number and random number on A4 paper. Because he is a soldier himself and knows how to investigate the state agency, it seems that he used this method by searching for this method before the crime and abandoning the body during the crime.

[Anchor]
In addition, after the crime, it was revealed that he texted his acquaintances as if they were victims with his cell phone, called the police, mimicked the female voice, and pretended to be victims. How did you see that part?


I'm seen as a thoroughly planned crime. Didn't he believe that his crime would be completely covered up? In other words, I think he thinks that he dreamed of a perfect crime cover-up, but eventually revealed it. If you think about the reason why he sent a text message to the victim's mobile phone while pretending to be a victim, I think he thought like this.

The victim is an adult. Even if an adult is reported missing, the police do not accept it well. Because he might have run away because he wanted to, he doesn't take it well. So the police see if there are life reactions.

When it comes to life reactions, I also see the possibility that the victim's cell phone turned off and increased, or that he ran away from home because he wanted to do so elsewhere. However, in the case of this suspect, I think he sent a text message to the victim's acquaintance pretending to be a victim to show that there was such a life reaction.

[Anchor]
A considerable amount of premeditated crime has been revealed, but the motive of the crime is a mystery. What are some that are known so far?


Now, there are reports that the suspect Yang Kwang-joon and the victim, who are 33 years old, were in an inappropriate relationship and were dating. In the case of Yang Kwang-jun, he is a married man with two children. However, it seems that he has been in an internal relationship with the victim since early this year.

In fact, Yang Kwang-joon was scheduled to be transferred to another unit at the end of this month, and the victim was also a term military officer, so the contract period was terminated at the end of last month. So, it was a relationship where the two had to break up, and they were forced to no longer meet each other due to the end of the contract period.

I think that's why we argued over this part. Yang Kwang-joon is saying that he committed this crime after learning that he could no longer meet the victim, but with careful speculation, he refused to meet any more. I carefully guess that the victim was killed when I realized that the two could no longer meet.

What is clear, however, is that there was an internal relationship between the two, that they disagreed about the breakup, that they argued with each other, and more importantly, that Yang Kwang-joon had prepared for the crime by searching for fake plates like this before the crime.

[Anchor]
So the police handed over Yang Kwang-joon to the prosecution yesterday on charges of murder, damage to the body, and abandonment of the body. What is the expected sentence?


If I guess carefully, in fact, in the case of murder and murder without abandonment of the body, when I serve as a prosecutor, I am usually sentenced to more than 20 years in prison in the first trial. However, in cases like this, the body is brutally abandoned, and in such cases, it often comes out of the first trial of life imprisonment. In addition, if you agree with the victim's bereaved family after the first trial, you can be reduced to 20 years in prison at the appeal trial. So I guess the first trial will get a serious sentence of more than 20 years in prison.

[Anchor]
There is also a story that if the body is brutally damaged like this, there is a 90% chance that it is a treatment. Is that correct?


That's right. Not only is the body brutally damaged in this way, but there are also cases that leave injuries that do not need to be done on the victim's face. If you continue to hit the face or damage the body in a brutal way even though your life has already been killed, it is often seen that you have done this damage in retaliation for the political relationship. In such cases, during the process of verifying the body, the relationship between the victim and the acquaintance is narrowed down. In many cases, investigations are expanded in that way.

[Anchor]
Let's look at the next topic. There was a very unfortunate incident. This is what YTN reported. A single mother in her 30s who was raising her daughter alone killed herself after being threatened by an illegal loan shark, how did the loan sharks harass the victim?


Don't people actually come before money? Of course, I'm a private lender, but I think it was too cruel. I only borrowed hundreds of thousands of won, but I demanded a very high interest rate, so soon the money I had to pay back increased to 10 million won. There are also circumstances in which he pressured the victim, saying that every minute he was late would increase by 100,000 won.

In addition, the victim had a 6-year-old child. He discovered this child's kindergarten and sent it to the kindergarten teachers as he pressured the victim, damaging the victim's reputation. In addition, the family photo of victim A, his home address, and his daughter's kindergarten address have been written down, revealing the situation that he has continued to pressure the victim as if he/she would harm this daughter if he/she did not pay the money properly.

[Anchor]
It's illegal, so shouldn't you report it to the police?


That's right. I also want to be clear about this part that you can collect when you have a bond. However, when collecting bonds, you must collect them in a fixed way during the week. If you violate this, you will be subject to criminal punishment for violating the law on fair collection of bonds. However, I think the last suicide note left for this victim is heartbreaking for me to tell my daughter.

I can report it to the police enough, but from the victim's point of view, I think I was afraid of doing harm to my daughter right away or kidnapping her in kindergarten, so I couldn't tell my acquaintances or report it to 112.

[Anchor]
What's more brutal is that even after the death of this mother in her 30s, she urged the rest of her family to pay back her acquaintances, and she has been angered by many people. Isn't it illegal to urge family members or acquaintances to pay back?


It's illegal. And the family isn't a debtor, is it? But as I said earlier, there's no reason why families should bear the same amount of debt and this is a system of associations. It's not even a joint guarantee. But what's really bad about an illegal debt collector is that it's unforgivable that he made this illegal collection to his family again, knowing that he made some extreme choice and died because of him. Of course, it's illegal.

[Anchor]
Perhaps that's why President Yoon Suk Yeol said he couldn't help but be angry at our YTN report, and ordered the prosecution and police to root out illegal debt collection activities by mobilizing all of their investigative capabilities. What is the level of punishment?


The level of punishment is expected to be very high. Although prison sentences of up to five years are stipulated, prison sentences can be sufficiently sentenced. This is because the victim died from this. It's a matter that scared the victim's family very much.

I will also look closely at the police and the prosecution on this case, but I also think it is necessary to show the public that the investigative agency first punishes the case through a preliminary arrest warrant before proceeding to court arrest. Today, the Prosecutor General also announced the principle of arresting and investigating illegal collection in principle.

In addition, threatening the victim and the person concerned against the victim's will is not only a violation of the collection law, but also a stalking. Therefore, he said that he would quickly apply provisional measures to protect victims immediately, whether it would be a restraining disposition for violating the Stalking Punishment Act. He said he would deal with the sentence strictly.

[Anchor]
I don't think we know how to deal with this kind of illegal private finance and this terrible collection. What should I do?


First of all, we need to know the range of interest rates that are basically legal. The legal maximum interest rate is up to 20% per year. It should be noted that all contracts with interest rates exceeding 20% per year are invalid, and if you give any more interest, you can request a refund through a lawyer.

If it is difficult to appoint a private lawyer with an amount of money, you can ask for help through the Legal Aid Corporation near your residence. And I recommend you to report it immediately to 112 and get help quickly from provisional measures for illegal collection.

[Anchor]
So far, we have looked into the cases that have become popular with lawyer Lee Go-eun, a former prosecutor. Thank you for talking with me today.