The special counsel investigating the insurrection case sought the death penalty on the 13th for former President Yoon Suk-yeol, who is accused of being the ringleader of the insurrection by declaring the Dec. 3 martial law. It sought life imprisonment for former Minister of National Defense Kim Yong-hyun and former Korean National Police Agency Commissioner General Cho Ji-ho, who are accused of engaging in major insurrection offenses.
At a sentencing hearing held on the 13th before the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 25 (Presiding Judge Jee Kui-youn), the special counsel investigating the insurrection case asked the court to sentence former President Yoon Suk-yeol to death.
Park Eok-su, deputy special counsel for the special counsel investigating the insurrection case, said at about 9:35 p.m. that day regarding the former president, "We ask that the defendant be sentenced to death." Yoon then gave a faint smile while looking at Deputy Special Counsel Park. Among Yoon's supporters seated in the gallery, curses such as "crazy XX" and "bulls—" were shouted. Judge Jee asked, "Please maintain decorum."
Under the Criminal Act, for the crime of being the ringleader of an insurrection, the court may impose only one of three penalties: death, life imprisonment, or life confinement. Regarding the request to impose the death penalty among these, the special counsel said, "We do not know whether it is appropriate to set a life term for the defendant," adding, "There are no circumstances to consider in sentencing, and there is no remorse, so a heavier sentence should be set. Therefore, it is not appropriate to set the minimum penalty among the statutory penalties."
Deputy Special Counsel Park said, "Although this insurrection could be overcome by public resistance and swift action by the National Assembly, there is considerable risk that, going forward, the destruction of the constitutional order using martial law as a tool will be repeated," and noted, "The destruction of the constitutional order perpetrated by public office elites should be punished more severely than the judgments against former Presidents Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo."
Park also described the Dec. 3 martial law as "an insurrectionary crime that sought to paralyze the power structure designed by the Constitution and to reorganize the governing structure by the military and police," adding, "The shock inflicted on the people and the state is indescribably great."
He continued, "Defendant Yoon Suk-yeol shows no serious reflection or sense of responsibility and calls the declaration and execution of martial law, driven by a lust for power for dictatorship and long-term rule, the defense of liberal democracy," adding, "This case is a crime that abused the status and authority of the presidency. As a legal professional who even served as prosecutor general, the defendant had a duty, more than anyone, to take the lead in defending the Constitution, yet proceeded to destroy the constitutional order, for which he deserves condemnation."