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Northbrook murder case delayed
Updated: September 11, 2012 2:01AM
NORTHBROOK | The case of Hyungseok Koh, a Northbrook resident accused of killing his son in 2009, will not go to trial today as originally scheduled.
The trial was postponed because defense attorneys have filed motions of intent to have nine expert witnesses appear in court, said Andrew Conklin, spokesman for the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office.
State’s attorneys have filed motions to completely bar or limit the witnesses during a jury trial, he added.
Also, Cook County Circuit Court Judge Garritt Howard, who is to hear Koh’s case at the Skokie Courthouse, is presiding over another trial at this time, Conklin said.
The next status hearing has been set for Thursday, Sept. 13.
Koh, 58, has been held on a $5 million bond in Cook County Jail since he was arrested on April 16, 2009, after allegedly confessing to the stabbing death of his son, Paul Koh, 22.
Paul Koh was found about 3:45 a.m. that day after being knifed in the neck at the family’s home on the 1900 block of Birch Road.
He had studied business at Western Illinois University, and was taking courses at Oakton Community College, according to relatives.
At that time, police said they believed the motive for the killing stemmed from an argument between the father and son that turned into a violent confrontation.
Hyungseok Koh, who was born in South Korea, worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 20 years, then opened a restaurant in Aurora.
He owned a vending machine business at the time of the crime, according to his original defense attorneys, Elliot Zinger and Associates.
Since Koh was charged with his son’s murder, his attorneys have filed motions to suppress his alleged confession.
In April of 2011, they also filed a lawsuit against the Northbrook Police Department alleging that officers violated Koh’s constitutional rights during his arrest and interrogation.
The firm of Jenner and Block is now handling the case pro bono, but Brian D. Pitts, head of the firm’s national media and communications, said a gag order prevents him from providing any information about it.
