section_path: Trial of Yoon Suk Yeol/Impeachment trial/Impeachment verdict
section_name: Impeachment verdict
paragraph_text: Impeachment verdict
  
  On 4 April, the Constitutional Court convened to announce its impeachment verdict. In a televised verdict read by acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung-bae, the judges unanimously decided in a 8–0 decision to remove Yoon from office, citing his betrayal of the public trust and serious violations of the law which failed to protect the Constitution. The Court removed Yoon from office on the basis of the following violations during martial law on 3–4 December:
  
  Political gridlock or suspicions of election fraud due to the National Assembly's exercise of its authority claimed by Yoon should have been resolved through political, institutional and judicial means, not by mobilizing military forces. Yoon's claim that the declaration was intended as a "warning" or an "appeal to the public" about the tyranny of the opposition party and a national crisis. However, such objectives are not legitimate grounds for declaring martial law as stipulated in the Martial Law Act.
  
  Yoon did not explain the specific details of the martial law to the martial law commander or other members, nor did he give the other members of the Cabinet the opportunity to state their opinions, thus there was no deliberation regarding the declaration of martial law. Yoon declared martial law without obtaining the signatures of prime minister Han and relevant Cabinet members, failed to publicly announce when the martial law would be implemented, in which areas of the country martial law was being implemented as well as who the martial law commander would be. Lastly, Yoon failed to notify the National Assembly of martial law implementation without delay.
  
  Deploying the military and police to block the Assembly members from entering the National Assembly and by ordering them to be dragged out, violated the constitutional provision that grants the Assembly the right to demand the lifting of martial law. Yoon also violated lawmakers' rights to deliberate and vote, as well as their right to immunity from arrest.
  
  Result of Yoon's direct request to NIS first deputy director Hong Jang-won to track the locations of his political opponents for potential arrests.
  
  Deploying military troops for political purposes, to block the functions and exercise of power by the National Assembly, led soldiers into direct conflict with civilians.
  
  Violated in the martial law decree with orders to prohibit the activities of the National Assembly, regional assemblies and political parties.
  
  By violating the provisions of the Constitution and Martial Law Act that stipulate the requirements for restricting basic rights under martial law and the principle of warrant requirements.
  
  Yoon's order to the defense minister Kim to mobilize troops to inspect the National Election Commission's computer systems, raiding the NEC, confiscation of on-duty NEC staff members’ phones, filming NEC computer systems infringed the independence of the NEC. Conducting search and seizure of the NEC without a warrant violated the warrant requirement principle. The court also added that the NEC had already taken measures to prevent election fraud before the last National Assembly election contrary to Yoon's claims.
  
  Engaging in location-tracking attempts for the purpose of potentially arresting the former chief justice Kim Myeong-su and former justices of the Supreme Court such as ex-justice Kwon Soon-il (former chair of the NEC), created pressure on current judges, suggesting they could be subject to arrest by the executive branch at any time.
  
  Upon the conclusion of the verdict at 11.22am KST, Yoon ceased to be president of South Korea, triggering a presidential election due to take place within 60 days. This paved the way for Yoon to be charged with other crimes in addition to insurrection as he no longer had presidential immunity.