Constitutional Court virtually concludes Yoon's impeachment trial... Focused on drafting decision

With two days left until the verdict of President Yoon Suk-yeol's impeachment trial, the justices are expected to hold a meeting and focus on drafting the decision.

According to the legal community on the 2nd, the justices reached a consensus in the meeting the previous morning on whether to uphold, dismiss, or reject the National Assembly's impeachment motion and reportedly derived a rough conclusion, namely the order and the court's opinion, through a verdict. However, the process of coordinating the specific grounds for each judgment, the wording to be included in the decision, and how much to record the justices' separate and supplementary opinions remains.

Accordingly, it seems that the Constitutional Court justices will continue to hold meetings to finalize discussions such as revising the decision on this day as well. There is a high possibility that they will hold a meeting just before the verdict on the 4th to finalize each justice's opinion.

The Constitutional Court usually sets the date for the verdict and notifies the parties as early as two days or as late as a week before the verdict date. Before the notification, the justices hold a meeting and complete the voting. In the past, the impeachment trials of presidents also went through this process, and the verdict date was announced 2 to 3 days before the verdict.

Since President Yoon Suk-yeol was impeached on December 14 last year, the Constitutional Court has recorded a total of 111 days of impeachment trial proceedings until the verdict date on the 4th. Former President Roh Moo-hyun took 63 days from impeachment to verdict, and former President Park Geun-hye took 91 days, making it the longest impeachment trial of a president in history.

During President Yoon's impeachment trial, there were 11 hearings, and 16 witnesses testified at the Constitutional Court. After the hearing concluded on February 25, the announcement of the verdict date was delayed more than expected, leading to speculation that the verdict was not being made due to unresolved differences among the eight constitutional justices.

The speculation was fueled by the fact that the opinions of the justices during Prime Minister Han Duck-soo's impeachment verdict were divided into four branches with a 5(4 to 1):1:2 split. The atmosphere heightened as Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, was acquitted in the second trial for violating the Public Official Election Act on the 26th of last month.

There was also an interpretation that the situation became more complicated as President Yoon, who attended the hearings while in custody, was suddenly released. The court's decision to cancel President Yoon's detention, pointing out 'the clarity of procedures and the legality of the investigation process,' was also seen as a burden on the Constitutional Court. Although the Constitutional Court adopted the interrogation records of key figures related to martial law as evidence in President Yoon's impeachment trial, President Yoon's side argued that under the revised Criminal Procedure Act of 2020, interrogation records of accomplices not acknowledged by the defendant cannot be used as evidence in criminal trials.

After concluding President Yoon's impeachment trial on the 25th of last month, it is known that the justices have been holding meetings almost daily to review the case. Although the Constitutional Court's decision cannot be appealed under the Constitutional Court Act, there is an analysis that they are focusing on a flawless decision as the retrial system is not legally blocked as a separate procedure.

The Constitutional Court plans to thoroughly secure confidentiality so that the contents of the full bench's agreement are not leaked until the verdict date, and the verdict of President Yoon's impeachment trial scheduled for 11 a.m. on the 4th will be broadcast live. Like during the hearing dates, public attendance is allowed for up to 20 seats, and there was a forecast that the number of visitors to the viewing application site yesterday could leave the highest competition rate for attendance in history.

Kim So-yeon, Hankyung.com reporter sue123@hankyung.com