"At 3 P.M. Today, the Whole Nation Watches...Death Penalty or Life Imprisonment"

Yoon to Receive First-Instance Verdict on Insurrection Ringleader Charge
Sentencing Hearing at Seoul Central District Court to Be Broadcast Live
Insurrection Special Prosecutor’s Team Demands Death Penalty
Yoon Has Consistently Argued It Was “Mes

Yonhap News Agency

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was indicted on charges of being the ringleader of an insurrection in connection with the December 3 Martial Law, will receive the first-instance verdict on the 19th. It comes 443 days after the declaration of martial law.

The 25th Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Ji Guyoun) will hold a sentencing hearing for former President Yoon’s insurrection-ringleader case at 3:00 p.m. that day in Courtroom 417, the main courtroom. The proceedings will be broadcast live in real time on television and the internet, in accordance with the court’s decision. Former President Yoon will appear in person in court together with his defense team.

◆Death penalty or life imprisonment for Yoon?= Former President Yoon was taken into custody and indicted in January last year on charges of declaring unconstitutional and unlawful martial law on December 3, 2024, mobilizing the military and police to occupy the National Assembly and the National Election Commission, and staging a revolt for the purpose of disrupting the constitutional order. It was the first time in the history of the Republic’s constitutional government that a sitting president had been indicted and tried on insurrection charges. On April 4 of the same year, the Constitutional Court removed former President Yoon from office. At the final hearing, Special Prosecutor Cho Eunseok’s insurrection investigation team requested the maximum statutory penalty under the law, the death sentence, for former President Yoon. The special counsel’s team stated, “He attempted to monopolize power and stay in office long term by using martial law as a means to usurp the legislative and judicial powers.”

By contrast, former President Yoon has consistently argued during the trial that this was a case of “messaging martial law.” His position is that the declaration of martial law was merely a “message-type measure” intended to inform the public of a state of governmental paralysis caused by impeachment moves and budget cuts by the major opposition party, and that he had no intention of implementing military rule or disrupting the constitutional order. Yoon’s side also argued that the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials did not have investigative authority over insurrection, and therefore both the investigation and indictment were unlawful.

◆If insurrection is recognized, a heavy sentence is inevitable= Legal experts believe that if the insurrection charge is recognized, a heavy sentence will be unavoidable. Under the Criminal Act, the only statutory penalties for the crime of being the ringleader of an insurrection are death, life imprisonment, or life penal servitude. Other panels that previously heard related cases have already defined the December 3 Martial Law as an insurrection.

The 33rd Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Lee Jinkwan), which sentenced former Prime Minister Han Duck Soo to 23 years in prison, described the martial law at the time as an “insurrection from above” and a “loyalist coup.” The 32nd Criminal Division of the same court (Presiding Judge Ryu Kyungjin), which sentenced former Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sangmin to 7 years in prison, also stated that former President Yoon and others had committed acts of insurrection. Former President Yoon was likewise sentenced to 5 years in prison at first instance in a separate case involving obstruction of arrest, and that panel also stated that the martial law “could be evaluated as the commencement of execution of the crime of insurrection.”

Although the determinations of separate panels do not have legally binding force on this sentencing, they are expected to significantly influence the standards of judgment, given that the underlying facts are the same. However, if the arguments that martial law was lifted within a short period of time and that there were no human or material damages are taken into consideration, there is also a possibility that the sentence could be reduced to a fixed-term imprisonment.

Former President Yoon is the third former president to stand trial on insurrection charges, following former Presidents Chun Doo Hwan and Roh Tae Woo. Previously, former President Chun, who was indicted over the December 12 Military Coup and the May 18 Insurrection, was sentenced to death at first instance in 1996, while former President Roh was sentenced to 22 years and 6 months in prison. In 1997, the Supreme Court finalized their sentences as life imprisonment for Chun and 17 years in prison for Roh.