Justice delayed is justice denied

The prosecution must investigate the case fast and bring them to justice before it’s too late.

The prosecution is reopening investigations into Lim Jong-seok, former President Moon Jae-in’s chief of staff, and Moon’s senior secretary for civil affairs, Cho Kuk, for their possible meddling in the 2018 Ulsan mayoral election to help a bid by Moon’s close friend. The Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office reviewed the case and returned it back to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office after finding deficiencies in the lower prosecution office’s earlier investigation. Since the case involves infringing on the fairness in an election that serves as a key pillar of democracy, the renewed investigation must leave no stone unturned.

The case is related to the June 13 local elections in 2018. Song Cheol-ho, a close friend of then-president Moon, was elected as Ulsan mayor against all odds. The question is whether the presidential office got involved to help his bid for the mayorship. In the first trial last November, Song and Democratic Party (DP) Rep. Hwang Un-ha, then Ulsan police chief, were sentenced to three years in prison for violating the election law. Baek Won-woo — a secretary for civil affairs under senior secretary Cho Kuk — got a two-year sentence. The bench found the police and the presidential secretariat had “abused their public role for private political interests,” upon delivering the heavy sentence.

Baek’s boss Cho and Moon’s chief of staff Lim were pardoned after the prosecution in April 2021 decided not to indict them. But it does not make sense that a lower-rank secretary went out to collude with the police even without the backing of a senior secretary or the presidential chief of staff. But prosecutors at the time did not indict them, citing a lack of tangible evidence to prove their culpability.

Cho and Lim are strongly protesting the reinvestigation. Lim called it “obvious political suppression.” But a person who had served in a high public office should not be so irresponsible. If they had done no wrong, they can prove so in the reinvestigation. If new evidence comes up, they must be tried and face the consequences.

Delays in investigations and trials can be particularly damaging when they are related to election crimes. It took two years for the prosecution to indict the concerning figures. The first ruling came out nearly four years later. Song had nearly completed his four-year term in the mayoral office, and Cho and Lim are preparing to run in the April 10 parliamentary elections.

As the maxim goes, justice delayed is justice denied. Even if the prosecution comes to a different conclusion over Cho and Lim, we cannot know when their trial will take place. The prosecution must investigate the case fast and bring them to justice before it’s too late.