South Korean special counsel seeks death penalty for Yoon in insurrection appeal

Death penalty demand

The request came at a hearing in Yoon's appeal against the life sentence he received in February, Yonhap reported. The team asked the Seoul High Court to impose capital punishment for orchestrating an insurrection by declaring martial law despite the absence of war, incident or equivalent national emergency.

Prosecutors first sought the death penalty in January at the first-instance trial. The Seoul Central District Court instead sentenced Yoon to life imprisonment in February, finding he illegally mobilized troops and police to seize the legislature, arrest political opponents and establish unchecked rule for a "considerable time."

Why the demand matters

By law, the ringleader of an insurrection can be sentenced only to death or life imprisonment if found guilty. South Korea has not executed anyone since 1997, effectively maintaining a moratorium on capital punishment.

Cho's team argued that only the death penalty could fully hold Yoon accountable for a crime as serious as orchestrating a rebellion. It said the country's long-standing pause on executions should not prevent courts from imposing death sentences. The special counsel team also appealed the ruling, arguing Yoon deserves the death penalty because his actions posed a grave threat to the country's democracy. An execution would be unlikely.

Yoon's legal team told reporters that prosecutors were repeating an argument "devoid of evidence and legal logic." It said Yoon's martial law was intended to raise public awareness about what he called attempts by the opposition-led legislature to paralyze state affairs, and that he had no intention of causing harm or establishing authoritarian rule. Yoon denies the charges.

Martial law and trials

Yoon declared martial law late at night on Dec. 3, 2024. It lasted only hours until a quorum of lawmakers broke through a blockade of heavily armed soldiers and police at the National Assembly and voted to overturn it, forcing his Cabinet to lift the measure.

The legislature impeached him on Dec. 14, 2024, and the Constitutional Court formally removed him from office in April 2025. He was re-arrested in July 2025. He had been indicted under detention in January 2025 as a suspected ringleader of insurrection.

He faces eight trials in connection with his martial law attempt, his wife's alleged corruption and the 2023 death of a marine officer. In February, Yoon apologized for the "frustration and hardship" his decree brought on the public, while standing behind the "sincerity and purpose" of his actions.

What happens next

The Seoul High Court has yet to set a date for a verdict on Yoon's appeal of the life sentence. South Korea has not carried out an execution in nearly three decades, and an execution remains unlikely.