Latest news with #Constitutiona
Korea Herald
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Will ex-PM Han be next Cabinet member detained?
Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo attended a questioning session on Tuesday to comply with a summons from special counsel Cho Eun-suk's team, which has been tasked with investigating former President Yoon Suk Yeol's alleged insurrection and treason. Han, who was summoned as a suspect, arrived at the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office at approximately 9:25 a.m. and entered the building without answering questions. Reporters asked whether he maintained his position that he neither participated in nor supported Yoon's alleged insurrection. The former prime minister briefly said, 'Thank you for your hard work.' While the special counsel reportedly questioned Han on his alleged role in former President Yoon's martial law declaration on Dec. 3, Tuesday's summons is seen as an effort to build the case ahead of the possible detention of the former prime minister. Han is suspected of both failing to prevent and potentially facilitating the unconstitutional imposition of martial law. According to the Constitution and Government Organization Act, the prime minister supervises ministries on behalf of the president and oversees the ministers' actions. Any proposal made by the defense minister and interior minister to declare martial law must go through the prime minister before it reaches the president. Since Han was in a position involving him in the decision-making process before and after the martial law declaration as the vice chair of the Cabinet meeting, the special counsel team views him as one of the key figures in the alleged insurrection. Han was previously named as an accomplice who attempted to prepare false public documents. According to the special counsel team, former President Yoon fabricated an official martial law document on Dec. 5, two days after declaring martial law. Although the National Assembly lifted martial law within hours, Han and then-Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun reportedly backdated the document to make Yoon's declaration appear legally proper. Kang Eui-gu, who at the time was a secretary at the presidential office and drafted the document, reportedly testified in the special counsel investigation that the document was discarded at Han's request and upon Yoon's approval. The decision would be in violation of Article 82 of the Constitution, which stipulates that acts of the president under law be executed in writing and that such documents should be signed by the prime minister and Cabinet members concerned. The special counsel team has raised the additional suspicion that Han called then-ruling People Power Party Floor Leader Rep. Choo Kyung-ho to interfere with the National Assembly's effort to lift the martial law declaration. Han is also accused of perjury for claiming in testimony to the Constitutional Court and the National Assembly that he was unaware of the martial law declaration in printed form until after the decree was lifted. During a press briefing, assistant special counsel Park Ji-young referenced the Constitutional Court's March ruling that dismissed the impeachment of former Prime Minister Han, noting that the court at the time found no objective evidence. 'Since then, the situation has changed significantly. The special counsel team was launched after the Constitutional Court's ruling and has collected additional evidence, including documents and records related to the martial law declaration,' Park said, suggesting that the legal interpretation of Han's alleged role in the martial law could shift. According to reports, Han attempted to dissuade Yoon after hearing him express his intention to impose martial law. When Yoon remained resolute, Han reportedly suggested hearing opinions from other Cabinet members. Once the quorum of 11 Cabinet members was met, Yoon delivered his intent to impose martial law in a two-minute statement. 'Given the Constitutional Court's March ruling, the central question now may be why the proposal to convene the Cabinet meeting was made in the first place,' the assistant special counsel said. 'It is necessary to determine whether this constituted a failure to fulfill official duties or an active involvement in Yoon's martial law declaration.' The special counsel team had previously summoned Han in early July and carried out search and seizure operations at his and Kang's residences on July 24. If the team applies for a warrant to detain the former prime minister and the court grants it, Han will be the third Cabinet member of the Yoon administration to be detained regarding martial law-related matters, following former Defense Minister Kim and former Interior Minister Lee Sang-min.
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Spokane County judges reaffirm their Constitutional oath, condemn politicization and bending of rule of law
May 1—William Shakespeare wasn't all that far off when he wrote the infamous "Let's kill all the lawyers" line from "Henry VI, Part II," said Spokane County Superior Court Judge Breean Beggs on the courthouse steps Thursday. "The quote comes from a man named Dick the Butcher, who's engaged in a rebellion and wants to create chaos and tyranny ... He says the first thing we have to do is silence the lawyers because they are in the way of freedom and a well-ordered government," Beggs told the crowd. "... In this courthouse, we've got judges who are standing ready to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law, regardless of how popular or unpopular it is on any one day. And we have lawyers who are willing to represent people to the best of their ability." Beggs and a group of other Spokane County Judges stood outside the courthouse to again take their Constitutional oath for National Law Day. Below the steps stood 9-year-old Ayva Griffith, who was there to recite the oath along with them. "They support us. They take care of people," said Ayva, whose family is filled with lawyers. "It makes me feel happy." Beggs spoke to more than 50 people on the courthouse lawn, including lawyers, county employees and citizens, urging them not to forgo the meaning of the Constitution out of fear or pressure, and to remind them that those in the Spokane judiciary took an oath to protect the rule of law without favorability. Although the event was not created in response to any "recent events" or actions taken against judges and lawyers from President Donald Trump and his administration, Beggs reminded the crowd, the timing is ripe. Washington State Bar Association President Sunitha Anjilvel acknowledged in a press release that "we are feeling very divided as a country." Trump's executive orders in the last three months of his presidency have thrown legal professionals into a tailspin — as Trump promises to retaliate against law firms that don't bow to his administration's requests and call for the impeachment of judges who rule against his executive orders for being unconstitutional, some law firms are caving to the demands, while judges are standing firm. When Trump called for the impeachment of James Boasberg, the chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Chief Justice John Roberts issued a statement pushing back on the sentiment, saying, "impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision." Federal officials this month also accused a Wisconsin judge of helping an immigrant evade arrest in her courtroom. She was arrested on charges of obstructing an agency and concealing someone to prevent an arrest, according to NPR, when she allegedly escorted the defendant through a jury door out into the hallway after learning ICE officials only had an administrative warrant and not one signed by a judge. Trump's actions have prompted prominent scholars to refer to the recent executive actions as a Constitutional crisis, the New York Times reported, citing the efforts to revoke birthright citizenship, bypassing congressional powers and threatening to deport people with different political beliefs. While Beggs declined to speak about ongoing legal controversies related to the Trump Administration, he said in general terms, there have always been people throughout history who believe one person should have full power to govern rather than the Constitution and laws of the country. And he consistently reminded those attending Law Day that "the rule of law is not political." "The power of our country is our rule of law, and the lawyers and the judges that make it so," he said in an interview. "There's ups and downs, but this country is fabulous, and it's the rule of law that makes it fabulous." Luvera Law Firm attorney Mark Kamitomo, who has practiced since 1989, warned the rule of law will not exist if the Constitution becomes meaningless. His family immigrated from Japan to Canada in a time where Japanese people had no due process in Canada or the U.S. Looking back, it's hard to believe that decades earlier, "my father and his family were living in animal stalls," Kamitomo said. "Under our Constitution, which is the cornerstone of America's democracy, the same laws apply to all — that no one is above the law and we all have the same unalienable liberties and rights that no one, including the government, can infringe upon," he said. "... It's become apparent that a movement to preserve the rule of law, government objectivity and fairness for all, must come from the ground up." Kamitomo said it's always concerning seeing people who are part of the judicial system "bend the rules." It appears that nowadays, he said, the Constitution is meaningless when the end goal is to gain more power. "To me, that's a slippery slope," Kamitomo said in an interview. As Beggs faced the sun in his black robe, he held up his right hand to lead the Constitutional oath to pledge honesty, truth and respect to the justice system. The crowd followed. At the end, a woman in the crowd quietly commented on her admiration for Beggs' previous comments: "All of us are created equal," he had said earlier. "In Spokane, we all belong."
