South Korea's Constitutional Court to Proceed with Yoon's Impeachment Pretrial Hearing as Scheduled
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Seoul, Dec 23 (NationPress) South Korea's Constitutional Court confirmed on Monday that it is set to conduct the first preparatory hearing for President Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment this week as scheduled.
The hearing is slated for Friday, and the court stated that Yoon would be considered to have received the essential documents related to his trial, regardless of his acknowledgment, as they were dispatched via postal service last Friday.
Yoon has refrained from accepting the documents for a week, despite various attempts by the court to deliver them through postal service, in-person handover, and an electronic system.
The documents comprise a request for a written reply and a mandate to submit the minutes from a Cabinet meeting he held just before announcing martial law on December 3, along with the text of the martial law decree issued that same day, according to Yonhap news agency.
“In accordance with the precedent established by the Supreme Court, the delivery is deemed effective once the litigation documents reach their intended destination,” stated Cheon Jae-hyeon, a court spokesperson, during a regular press briefing.
Yoon faced impeachment from the National Assembly on December 14 due to his brief martial law declaration and is now awaiting the Constitutional Court's ruling on whether he will be removed from office or reinstated.
With his presidential authority suspended, he has disregarded all notifications sent to both his residence and office soliciting his cooperation with the impeachment proceedings and an investigation into insurrection allegations against him.
The court's justices convened on Thursday and decided that, should Yoon continue to decline the documents, they would be regarded as served. The documents were delivered to the presidential residence the following day.
Earlier that day, South Korean police began examining President Yoon's personal phone records after acquiring them for their inquiry into his flawed declaration of martial law earlier this month, officials reported.
The special investigation team examining the case is reviewing the records for conversations with individuals allegedly involved in the martial law declaration on December 3, having obtained them through a warrant.
