It has been confirmed that Justice Oh Seok-jun, the first Supreme Court justice appointed under the Yoon Seok-yeol administration, did not take part in the final appeal in the case charging the former president with obstruction of arrest.

On the 8th, the Supreme Court stated that Justice Oh did not participate in the deliberations of the Supreme Court appeal concerning allegations that the former president obstructed the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials) in executing an arrest. Justice Oh recused himself out of concern that misunderstandings could arise regarding the fairness of the proceedings. Accordingly, after the case was assigned to the Supreme Court Third Division, he did not participate in the deliberations and is also expected to be absent from the ruling to be delivered on the 9th.

The Supreme Court Third Division that heard this case consisted of Justices Lee Heung-gu, Oh Seok-jun, Noh Kyung-pil, and Lee Suk-yeon. With Justice Oh not taking part, the remaining three justices handled the deliberations and the decision. The presiding justice is Justice Lee Heung-gu, and the justice in charge is Justice Lee Suk-yeon.

Justice Oh was the first Supreme Court justice appointed after the former president took office in 2022. He also has a personal relationship with Yoon. A year junior to Yoon at the Seoul National University law school, Justice Oh prepared for the bar exam together with him, maintaining a long-standing association. At his confirmation hearing, his closeness with Yoon was also noted.

At the time, Justice Oh described their relationship, saying, “When we were in college, when we had a meal (with President Yoon), we would share drinks, and in later meetings as well, when we met in the evening there were times we had alcohol alongside.” Judges may voluntarily seek recusal and step away from the deliberation of a case when there are concerns about the fairness of the proceedings.

In January last year, the former president was brought to trial on charges of mobilizing staff of the Presidential Security Service to block the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials from executing an arrest warrant. He is also accused of infringing the martial-law deliberation authority of nine cabinet members who could not attend the meeting by convening only some ministers when martial law was declared. In January, the first-instance court sentenced the former president to five years in prison. In April, the appellate court increased the term to seven years by additionally finding him guilty on some charges. This Supreme Court ruling is the first Supreme Court conclusion the former president will receive in connection with the 12·3 insurrection.