A Seoul appellate court sentenced former Justice Minister Park Sung-jae to nine years in prison on October 21 for his role in the December 3 martial law case. Park had received a 25-year sentence at his first trial, making the appeal ruling a reduction of 16 years.
The appellate court found that Park recognized the martial law measure as unconstitutional and actively participated in matters involving its proclamation, according to reports from Kyunghyang Shinmun and SBS. Those findings preserved the central conclusion that he performed an important role in the insurrection.
Findings that narrowed Parkโs criminal liability
The court did not, however, accept that Park had joined advance planning for martial law. It also acquitted him of abuse of authority over an instruction to dispatch personnel to a joint investigation headquarters. The rejection of prior coordination and the acquittal on that separate count narrowed the conduct for which he was held criminally responsible.
The ruling was issued by Criminal Division 1 of the Seoul High Court, a panel assigned to insurrection cases and presided over by Judge Yun Seong-sik. The panel distinguished Parkโs recognized participation after he understood the unconstitutional nature of the measure from the broader allegation that he had helped plan it beforehand.
The decision leaves a substantial prison term in place while sharply revising the first courtโs assessment of Parkโs liability. Reports also said the appellate court reversed and remanded a related dismissal concerning Lee Wan-kyu. Attention now turns to whether the parties seek further review of the nine-year sentence and the appellate courtโs mixed findings on the individual charges.