South Korea’s Supreme Court has upheld a seven-year prison sentence for former President Yoon Suk Yeol in one of the criminal cases stemming from his controversial declaration of martial law in December 2024.
The verdict affirms an earlier ruling by the Seoul High Court, which found Yoon guilty of violating Cabinet procedures before imposing martial law, falsifying official records to conceal procedural lapses, and later destroying related documents. The court also held him responsible for deploying presidential security personnel to unlawfully resist law enforcement officers attempting to arrest him following his impeachment.
Yoon’s declaration of martial law lasted only a few hours before lawmakers entered the National Assembly, overrode security blockades, and voted to revoke the order, forcing the Cabinet to lift the emergency measure. The incident triggered one of South Korea’s most significant political crises in recent years.
The former president, who remains in custody, did not appear in court for the ruling. The Supreme Court’s decision is final in this case. However, Yoon continues to face several other criminal proceedings, including an appeal against a separate life sentence handed down in a rebellion case.
In a statement, Yoon’s legal team expressed disappointment with the judgment, arguing that the Supreme Court had not given the case sufficient consideration. The ruling is consistent with the Constitutional Court’s earlier decision that removed Yoon from office in April 2025, concluding that his declaration of martial law lacked legal justification and failed to follow constitutional procedures.
Court proceedings revealed that although Yoon summoned several Cabinet members before announcing martial law on national television, key officials testified that he informed them of his decision rather than seeking their approval or deliberation. The court also found that several other Cabinet members were either not notified or were informed too late to participate in the decision-making process.
The political turmoil caused by the martial law declaration disrupted governance, affected diplomatic engagements, and unsettled financial markets before stability gradually returned following the election of President Lee Jae Myung in June 2025.
Yoon is also appealing another 30-year prison sentence in a separate case alleging that he ordered drone operations in 2024 to escalate tensions with North Korea as part of a broader plan to justify imposing martial law. His legal team has denied the allegations, maintaining that the drone operations were carried out in response to North Korea’s repeated launch of trash-filled balloons into South Korea.
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