S. Korean prosecutors seek 30 year prison sentence for ousted president Park Geun-hye

Our top story this morning...South Korean prosecutors have demanded ousted former president Park Geun-hye serve 30 years in jail for her role in a massive corruption scandal that marked a stunning fall from grace for the country's first ever female leader.Faced with 18 charges including bribery, abuse of power and leaking state secrets,... three decades in prison may mean a life sentence for Park, who is 66 years old. Lee Jeong-yeon starts us off. If the prosecution gets its way, former President Park Geun-hye could be spending the rest of her life behind bars.Tuesday saw a long-awaited hearing at the Seoul Central District Court in which they presented their sentencing demands for South Korea's former conservative leader. The prosecutors have demanded 30 years, which is 5 more than what had been demanded for her close confidante Choi Soon-sil. They reasoned that considering the gravity of the case and that Park was the country's leader, a heavier sentencing is necessary. At the hearing, the prosecutors said Park tarnished South Korea's constitutional history and that she harmed constitutional values by privatizing power entrusted to her by the people. On top of jailtime, they also sought a fine of 118-point-five billion won, or 109 million U.S. dollars. Last year, Park became the first South Korean president to be impeached and removed from office. She was indicted last April on 18 charges including bribery and abuse of power, 15 of which she was found guilty.She was found to have accepted bribes in exchange for political favors for a number of the country's biggest conglomerates such as SK, Samsung, and Lotte. Park is also accused of letting her longtime confidante Choi Soon-sil meddle in state affairs even though Choi held no official post. And... they are both accused of coercing businesses into paying some 73 million U.S. dollars to two non-profit organizations Choi controlled. Legal experts had expected a heavy sentence for Park after Choi was sentenced earlier this month to 20 years... for 13 overlapping charges.That was the heaviest sentence so far among those involved in the corruption scandal.At Tuesday's hearing, which started at 10 AM and wrapped up less than five hours later, prosecutors delivered their remarks on Park's sentencing, and her lawyers delivered their final defense. Lee Jeong-yeon, Arirang News