Constitutional Court: "Yoon's Attendance at First Hearing on 14th Uncertain... On-site Distribution of Audience Tickets Suspended"

Eight Attorneys Now Represent President Yoon in Impeachment Trial
Constitutional Court to Allocate Audience Seats Online Due to Rally Congestion

The office of President Yoon Suk-yeol has not yet communicated any special position to the Constitutional Court regarding whether President Yoon will personally attend the first formal hearing scheduled at the Constitutional Court on the 14th.

The Constitutional Court decided to suspend the distribution of on-site attendance tickets and allocate seats through online applications due to congestion caused by pro- and anti-impeachment rallies.

Cheon Jae-hyun, Public Relations Officer of the Constitutional Court. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

At a regular briefing on the afternoon of the 10th, Cheon Jae-hyun, the Constitutional Court spokesperson, responded "Yes" to the question, "Has President Yoon's side revealed whether the president will attend the hearing on the 14th?"

Spokesperson Cheon also stated, "The day before, a power of attorney for the respondent was submitted," adding, "Attorney Cha Ki-hwan was newly added to the law firm representing the respondent."

Attorney Cha, a graduate of the 17th Judicial Research and Training Institute class, serves as a director of the Korea Broadcasting Culture Promotion Foundation, the major shareholder of MBC, and has previously served as a director of KBS.

With this addition, President Yoon's legal team has increased from seven to eight members, including attorneys Bae Bo-yoon, Yoon Gap-geun, Bae Jin-han, Choi Geo-hoon, Seo Seong-geon, Do Tae-woo, and Kim Gye-ri.

Currently, the National Assembly's prosecution representatives include 17 attorneys, among them former Constitutional Court Justice Kim Yi-soo.

The Constitutional Court revealed that during the justices' deliberation the previous day, the full bench discussed the admissibility of evidence submitted in relation to President Yoon's impeachment trial and ways to organize the key issues regarding the grounds for impeachment.

Spokesperson Cheon said, "It is difficult to disclose specific deliberation details, but we discussed the direction for proceeding with the hearing."

When asked whether the so-called 'withdrawal of the charge of rebellion' controversy was also discussed, Cheon replied, "I understand that everything was comprehensively reviewed."

Regarding the determination of guilt or innocence under criminal law concerning the factual matters in the impeachment accusation, he reiterated, "The judgment on the applicability of legal provisions is a matter for the court."

When asked if there is sufficient time to review investigation records before the hearing and whether the remaining requested records from investigative agencies can arrive even on holidays, Cheon responded, "The justices continue to review the case regardless of weekends or holidays, often working from home. It is difficult to say that documents cannot be received on holidays."

Police are on guard in front of the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 8th, six days before the first formal hearing of President Yoon Seok-yeol's impeachment trial. Photo by Yonhap News

The first hearing of President Yoon's impeachment trial on the 14th will be held in the Constitutional Court's grand courtroom.

The Constitutional Court will suspend on-site distribution of attendance tickets and plans to allocate about 30% (31 seats) of the 104 general audience seats through online applications. Those who apply for attendance on the Constitutional Court website will receive a text message with the lottery results at 5 p.m. the day before the hearing.

In a press release distributed that morning, the Constitutional Court explained the background, stating, "This measure was taken for citizen safety due to severe congestion around the main gate of the courthouse caused by pro- and anti-impeachment rallies."

The Constitutional Court also announced that for constitutional court cases other than President Yoon's impeachment trial, the distribution of attendance tickets on-site will proceed as usual.