The falling trust in the bench

Former chairman of SBW Group Kim Sung-tae, charged with embezzlement and illicit remittance to North Korea, has been released on bail. Bail was also granted to others related to the case of smuggled funding for North Korea in exchange for development projects.

The pre-trial arrest for suspects indicted under the criminal law is valid for six months. The court can extend the arrest in an exceptional case. Kim was forced to return from the Philippines last year and was arrested on Feb. 3. The first detention was extended in July before the deadline expired after the prosecution added another charge of embezzlement. The court released him after making little progress in his case.

Kim’s case hinged on the trial of former Gyeonggi deputy governor Lee Hwa-young, who has been deferring a trial by changing his lawyer and filing a complaint with the bench. When his trial will open cannot be known since the bench is expected to change from the judiciary reshuffle scheduled for next month.

Suspects implicated in the Daejang-dong development scandal — including Kim Man-bae, the largest shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu, the developer behind the bribery scandal — were all freed from pretrial detention. Park Young-soo, former high-profile special counsel accused of pocketing multi-million-dollar wealth from the Daejang-dong project also had been released on bail.

In theory, criminal suspects have the right to be tried without physical detention until found guilty at court. But releasing them because trials are being delayed is a different matter. Others can intentionally delay trials to seek bail, whereas freed suspects could go into hiding or attempt collusion.

The Supreme Court is mulling various measures to speed up the trial process. It is considering a one-year extension of the term of a bench head and the employment of retired judges and artificial intelligence. The National Assembly also must do its share by hastening the review of a bill to increase judge quota to uphold the civilian right to speedy trial.

A different approach is needed for criminal suspects who try to protract the trial process. The bench should be relieved of other cases to focus more on a certain case being overly delayed. Extension of the arrest period for criminal suspects also could be an option. Judges must do their part, too. They must not abandon a case they long sat on, citing a reshuffle or resignation. Kang Kyu-tae, a former senior judge, resigned after dilly-dallying for 16 months on the case of Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung on the allegation of violating the election law. The accumulation of such cases only lengthens the trial process and brings down people’s confidence in the court.