A South Korean court is to rule on whether the captain of a ferry that capsized, killing more than 300 people, should be executed for culpable homicide.
A three-judge panel in the southern city of Gwangju will hand down verdicts and sentencing on Tuesday in the trial of captain Lee Joon-seok, 68, as well as 14 crew members, who face jail terms if convicted.
The overloaded Sewol capsized on 16 April while making a turn during a routine voyage to the holiday island of Jeju. The crew were among the first people to be rescued from the ship, while many passengers – mostly children on a school trip – waited in their cabins.
The tragedy provoked a public outcry and there have been concerns over whether the crew would get a fair trial, with private sector lawyers largely shunning the defendants. Only one crew member was represented by a private lawyer.
“I think the prosecutors have been under very heavy pressure,” said Cheong Yeong-seok, a law professor at Korea Maritime and Ocean University.