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SEOUL — A Seoul appellate court on Thursday suspended the first formal hearing of former President Yoon Suk Yeol's appeals trial on charges of leading an insurrection over his failed 2024 martial law bid, after his lawyers filed for the recusal of all three presiding judges, according to Yonhap News.

The Seoul High Court announced the decision on May 14, a day that had been scheduled for the initial hearing of Yoon's appeal against his February life sentence for insurrection. Both Yoon and his legal team did not appear in court, Yonhap reported.

Coverage Comparison

All reporting on this matter comes from Yonhap News Agency, which provided multiple articles tracking the developments. Initial reports indicated the hearing was set to proceed as scheduled, noting that Yoon's legal team had filed for recusal but that proceedings might be impacted. A subsequent update confirmed the court's decision to halt the trial, citing the legal requirement to suspend proceedings until a decision on such requests is made, barring urgent exceptions.

A separate Yonhap report from later in May covered a related but distinct case: Yoon's trial on charges of giving false testimony during former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo's insurrection trial, with a ruling expected on May 28.

Key Claims

  • Yoon was sentenced to life imprisonment by a lower court in February for leading an insurrection through his short-lived martial law declaration in December 2024, as reported by Yonhap.
  • His legal team filed for recusal of the three judges presiding over the appellate trial, arguing that a fair trial could not be expected because the judges had effectively found Yoon guilty during Han Duck-soo's appeals trial, per Yonhap.
  • The appellate bench sentenced Han to 15 years in prison last week for aiding and abetting Yoon's martial law declaration.
  • The Seoul High Court decided to halt Yoon's appeals trial due to the recusal request, separating his proceedings from those of seven other officials involved in the martial law bid, according to one Yonhap report.
  • Yoon is standing a total of eight trials in connection with the martial law bid, corruption allegations involving his wife, and the 2023 death of a Marine.
  • In the separate perjury case, the special counsel team has requested a two-year prison sentence for Yoon, who is accused of giving false testimony during Han's trial.

Perspectives

The appellate court's decision to halt the proceedings reflects the legal framework governing recusal requests, which mandates suspension of trial unless urgent circumstances apply. The court announced it would schedule a later hearing date for Yoon's case, according to Yonhap.

Yoon's legal team contends that the judges' prior involvement in Han Duck-soo's trial—where they found Han guilty of insurrection—compromised their impartiality in Yoon's own case. The prosecution had appealed the lower court's life sentence, initially demanding the death penalty, while Yoon's defense also filed an appeal.

In the perjury matter, Yoon is accused of misleading the court during Han's trial by suggesting that a Cabinet meeting before the martial law declaration was pre-planned, contradicting the special counsel's argument that the meeting was convened only after Han proposed it. Yoon's response during testimony—"Cabinet members are not dolls who come to create an outward appearance"—has been cited in reports, though his broader defense arguments have not been detailed in available coverage.

As of the latest reports, Yoon remains in custody since July, facing multiple legal proceedings that will likely extend well into the future.