Former President Yoon Suk-yeol appeared on the 26th for the first hearing in a case newly indicted by the special counsel on charges including special obstruction of the performance of official duties. It was the first time in 85 days that Yoon appeared in court since showing up on Jul. 3 for the trial on the charge of being the ringleader of an insurrection. At the hearing, Yoon denied all charges.
The Criminal Agreement Division 35 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Baek Dae-hyeon, chief judge) opened Yoon's first trial at 10:15 a.m. in Supreme Courtroom 417. Yoon is also undergoing a bail hearing to determine whether he will be released.
At about 10:16 a.m., Yoon entered the courtroom wearing a white shirt and a navy suit without a tie. His closely cropped hair showed a lot of gray, and he looked thinner than before. On the left chest of his jacket was a badge bearing the inmate number "3617." Walking in slowly, Yoon bowed to the bench and took his seat at the defendant's table.
When Presiding Judge Baek Dae-hyeon said, "Defendant, please stand," Yoon rose from his seat. After the bench notified him of his right to remain silent, Yoon answered softly, "Yes," and nodded. When the judge then asked his name and date of birth, Yoon also spoke softly, saying, "Yoon Suk-yeol" and "Dec. 18, 60." To the court's question, "Is it correct that you do not wish a jury trial?" Yoon only nodded.
Earlier, on Jul. 19, the special counsel indicted Yoon under detention on charges of abuse of authority to impede the exercise of rights, drafting and using false official documents, violating the Presidential Records Act, damaging public documents, violating the Presidential Security Act, special obstruction of the performance of official duties, and abetting a suspect's escape.
Yoon is accused of convening only part of the Cabinet before the declaration of martial law on Dec. 3 last year to create only the appearance of a Cabinet meeting, thereby infringing on the constitutional authority of nine other Cabinet members who could not attend—their rights to deliberate and decide on martial law. He is also accused of creating a false martial law proclamation after the lifting of martial law and shredding and disposing of the document, which was a presidential record and a public document.
In addition, Yoon is accused of ordering the dissemination to foreign media of a PG (press guidance, the government's position for media response) containing the false statement that there was "not the slightest intention to destroy the constitutional order," and of ordering the deletion of secure phone communication logs of former Defense Counterintelligence Command chief Yeo In-hyeong and others. He is also accused of directing the Presidential Security Service in Jan. to block the execution of an arrest warrant by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials.
The special counsel said that day, "In the course of committing the insurrection, the defendant neutralized constitutional checks on power, and after the insurrection, committed constitution-destroying acts such as concealing and smoothing over the crime."
In response, Yoon's legal team said that day, "The defendant (Yoon) denies all the charges." The team said, "The special counsel's indictment is a planned prosecution with political purposes," and added, "Indicting on insurrection constitutes unlawful double indictment." They continued, "We ask the court to render a judgment of not guilty or dismissal of the indictment."
Yoon also spoke directly at the hearing that day. Regarding the "post-facto drafting and disposal of the martial law document" allegation, Yoon's side said the document was merely an unofficial paper drafted by former Deputy Minister Kang Ui-gu, and since former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo ordered its disposal and it thereby lost its character as an official document, destroying it did not constitute a crime.
When the bench asked, "What is the basis for saying that an order from the former prime minister alone to dispose of it deprives it of its character as a document under national law?" Yoon said, "On Dec. 7, when (the former deputy minister) came to get my signature, even if it was an after-the-fact departmental document, I scolded him, saying, 'A Ministry of National Defense official should draft it and submit it to the minister, the prime minister, and the president; how can the presidential secretary's office chief draft it?' And because (the former deputy minister) said he would just keep it, I think that is why, even without asking me, the former prime minister naturally thought it would be disposed of."
The hearing ended after about two hours. The next hearing will be held at 10:15 a.m. on Oct. 10. The bench decided to proceed one to two times a week and scheduled up to the 15th hearing on Dec. 19.
Meanwhile, earlier the court allowed live coverage of the hearing at the special counsel's request. After the hearing, the video will be released online following a de-identification process that masks personal information. This is the first time proceedings at a lower court, other than a sentencing, are being broadcast.