Former President Yoon Suk-yeol attends the first trial sentencing hearing for charges of leading a rebellion related to the December 12 emergency martial law on the 19th in Seocho-gu, Seoul. On this day, the Criminal Division 25 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Ji Gwi-yeon) sentenced former President Yoon to life imprisonment. [Yonhap News]

Former President Yoon Suk-yeol has once again filed a constitutional appeal, arguing that the special prosecutor law for rebellion is unconstitutional.

This move comes after his request for a constitutional review of the special prosecutor law's provisions was rejected by the Criminal Procedure Act in his ongoing criminal trial, while a separate constitutional appeal against the same law is already being reviewed by the Constitutional Court's full bench.

According to legal circles on the 27th, former President Yoon's legal team filed two constitutional appeals on the 25th concerning certain provisions of the special prosecutor law for rebellion.

The provisions subject to the appeals include those defining the scope of investigation (Article 2, Paragraph 1), the appointment process for the special prosecutor (Article 3), and the special prosecutor's authority over cases where prosecution is pending (Article 7, Paragraph 1).

Another constitutional appeal case includes provisions on the mandatory broadcast of rebellion trials (Article 11, Paragraphs 4 and 7) and plea bargaining (Article 25).

This latest constitutional appeal is a follow-up action after the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 25 (then Presiding Judge Ji Gwi-yeon), which handled former President Yoon's charges of leading a rebellion, dismissed two requests for a constitutional review of the law during the trial.

A request for a constitutional review of a law is a system where a court requests the Constitutional Court to review the constitutionality of a law if it becomes a prerequisite for a trial. If the request is rejected or dismissed, the party can file a constitutional appeal.

Former President Yoon's legal team had requested constitutional reviews of provisions concerning the scope of investigation, the appointment process for the special prosecutor, and the mandatory broadcast of trials under the special prosecutor law on two occasions in September-October of last year.

However, the first trial court dismissed all these requests when it delivered its verdict on the 19th of last month. It appears that former President Yoon's legal team has filed a constitutional appeal again to contest the constitutionality of the law in response to the court's decision.

Former President Yoon had previously filed his own constitutional appeals regarding the same provisions of the special prosecutor law. His constitutional appeals concerning the mandatory broadcast of trials and the plea bargaining provisions stipulated in the special prosecutor law have passed the preliminary review by the designated court and are currently being deliberated by the full bench of nine justices.

Former President Yoon had also filed requests for a constitutional review of the special prosecutor law with the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 35 (Presiding Judge Baek Dae-hyeon), which handled cases such as obstruction of arrest, but these requests were dismissed.

Consequently, former President Yoon's legal team filed a constitutional appeal, but the Constitutional Court dismissed it on the 24th, citing the expiration of the filing period.

When appealing a court's decision, a constitutional appeal must be filed within 30 days from the date of receiving notification of the dismissal or rejection. As the appeal was filed after this period, it was deemed inadmissible due to non-compliance with the filing requirements.