9th Hearing Scheduled for 2 p.m. on the 18th
No Mention of Trial Conclusion
The Constitutional Court on the 13th designated an additional hearing date for President Yoon Seok-yeol's impeachment trial on the 18th.
Acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung-bae of the Constitutional Court took his seat on the 13th at the Grand Bench of the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul, during the "8th Hearing on the Impeachment Trial of President Yoon Seok-yeol." Photo by Yonhap News
Acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung-bae announced at the conclusion of the 8th hearing of President Yoon's impeachment trial that the 9th hearing would be scheduled for 2 p.m. on the 18th. However, he did not mention whether more hearings would be scheduled afterward or when the trial would be concluded.
Acting Chief Justice Moon explained, "We will conduct evidence examination on the records that were admitted as evidence today but have not yet been examined." He also stated that during the hearing on the 18th, both the petitioner and the respondent sides will be given two hours each to organize and present their current arguments and summaries of documentary evidence.
The Constitutional Court has previously maintained the position that there is "no set plan" regarding whether additional hearings will be held after the 8th hearing.
Once the evidence examination is completed in the impeachment trial, the prosecution committee can present their final opinion on the impeachment. The respondent (President Yoon) must also be given the opportunity to present a final statement. Therefore, if the evidence examination is completed on the same day, the trial may proceed to the final opinion presentation stage. In this case, the hearing will be concluded, leaving only the verdict.
Whether to admit additional witnesses requested by President Yoon's side is also a variable. If additional witnesses are admitted, further hearings will be necessary for witness questioning. The decision on whether to admit them will be made during deliberations on the 14th.
If the evidence examination and final opinion presentation procedures are wrapped up without admitting additional witnesses, the court will proceed to deliberation and verdict, followed by drafting the decision and delivering the verdict. This is expected to take place around early March. If the process takes longer, mid-March is also being mentioned by some.
Previously, the Constitutional Court had designated hearing dates up to the 5th hearing on the 3rd of last month, then added three more hearing dates on the 16th, during which witness questioning was conducted for key related figures such as former Minister of National Defense Kim Yong-hyun, former 1st Deputy Director of the National Intelligence Service Hong Jang-won, Army Special Warfare Command Commander Kwak Jong-geun, and former Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Commissioner Kim Bong-sik.
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