Variable factors for Constitutional Court in Yoon's impeachment trial

[Anchor]

There are two major variables in this impeachment trial.

One is that there are currently six constitutional judges, leaving three positions vacant, and the other is Article 51 of the Constitutional Court Act, which stipulates the reasons for suspending the trial.

Kim So-yeong reports.

[Report]

Article 51 of the Constitutional Court Act states that "if a criminal proceeding is under way for the same cause as in the request for impeachment against the respondent, the court may suspend the trial procedure."

If President Yoon Suk Yeol faces a criminal trial in the future for charges such as insurrection, the impeachment trial at the Constitutional Court could be suspended.

In fact, the trial procedure has been halted for nearly a year for Prosecutor Son Jun-sung, whose impeachment motion passed due to the 'allegation of political meddling' for the same reason.

However, even in this case, the decision to suspend the trial procedure is at the discretion of the court.

In the legal community, there are predictions that it will be difficult for the Constitutional Court to suspend the trial procedure, considering the seriousness of the issue of 'presidential impeachment'.

[Han Sang-hee/Honorary Professor, Korea University Law School: "In the case of a presidential impeachment trial, the constitutional order is in a state of considerable confusion, so unless there are very exceptional circumstances, I don't think the constitutional judges will suspend the trial procedure."]

Another significant variable is that since three constitutional judges recommended by the National Assembly retired last October, the Constitutional Court is currently operating with a 'six-member system'.

While an impeachment motion can be accepted with the approval of more than six judges, if the nine-member Constitutional Court were to accept an impeachment with only six judges, it could raise issues of fairness in the future, which would be a burden for the court.

As President Yoon previously indicated in a statement that there would be intense legal disputes, there are also forecasts that the impeachment trial itself could be prolonged, and in this case, the scheduled retirement of Justices Moon Hyung-bae and Lee Mi-sun on April 18 next year could also be a variable.

KBS News, Kim So-yeong.