A South Korean court has ruled that the suspension of an army general involved in the so-called "martial law bus" incident during the declaration of a state of emergency must be canceled. This ruling marks the second time a military official has won a lawsuit against disciplinary action related to the martial law.
The Seoul Administrative Court's Administrative Division 14, presided over by Judge Lee Sang-deok, ruled on October 22 in favor of former Army Mobilization Chief Jeong Hak-seung, who filed a lawsuit against the Minister of National Defense seeking to overturn his three-month suspension.
The court annulled the suspension and ordered the Defense Ministry to bear all legal costs. However, the specific reasons for the cancellation were not disclosed during the court proceedings.
Earlier this year, the Defense Ministry imposed the three-month suspension on Jeong, citing violations of legal obligations during the state of emergency.
On December 4, 2024, shortly after the National Assembly passed a resolution demanding the end of the state of emergency, Jeong, following orders from then-martial law commander Park An-soo, designated three officers from the Army Headquarters for transport to Seoul and boarded a bus with other officials. The bus, which departed from Gyeryongdae Army Headquarters, carried a total of 34 military personnel.
This ruling follows a similar case last month, where former Cyber Security Chief Yoo Jae-won of the Defense Security Command successfully had his two-month suspension overturned. Yoo had received orders to deploy to a polling firm run by journalist Kim Eo-jun during the martial law but instructed his team to remain on standby instead.
Meanwhile, military officials facing criminal charges related to the martial law bus incident and the issuance of proclamations have denied all allegations in court.
The defense team for Kim Sang-hwan, former legal chief of the Army Headquarters, argued, "The prosecution has not clarified what kind of riot Kim was allegedly involved in, and it is unclear whether his inaction and bus boarding constitute separate acts or one single act of conspiracy." They maintain his innocence.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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