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Yoon Suk Yeol Declines Constitutional Appeal of Seven-Year Prison Term
Former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will not challenge his Supreme Court conviction on obstruction of justice charges. His lawyers announced the decision on July 20 after the top court upheld a seven-year sentence on July 9. The case stems from Yoon's December 2024 martial law attempt.
Jul 19, 9:20 PM·1m read1 source
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Former President Yoon Suk Yeol will not file a constitutional appeal against his Supreme Court conviction on obstruction of justice charges. His lawyers announced the decision on July 20. Yonhap reported that the Supreme Court upheld a seven-year prison term for Yoon on July 9.
The conviction covered his actions blocking investigators from detaining him after the failed martial law bid in December 2024. This marked Yoon's first finalized court decision. Yoon's legal team considered filing a petition over inconsistencies with legal precedents but decided against it.
"(Yoon) made clear that constitutional appeals, which make a final court ruling the subject of a constitutional complaint, are difficult to reconcile with the system of judicial power envisioned under the current Constitution," the team said in a statement.
A set of judicial reform laws that took effect in March allows individuals to dispute the constitutionality of finalized rulings. Yoon has faced multiple criminal trials since his martial law declaration on Dec.
3, 2024, and subsequent ouster from office. His main trial on insurrection charges continues at an appellate court. A lower court had sentenced him to life in prison in February.
