Overview

• Yoon Suk Yeol appeared in court for the first time since his July 10 detention, attending the opening session as required by law after skipping 11 insurrection hearings.
• He pleaded not guilty as prosecutors outlined charges that include obstructing his detention, violating Cabinet members’ voting rights, revising the martial law proclamation, ordering deletion of call records, and spreading false statements.
• At the special counsel’s request, judges approved recording and release of the full opening session online after anonymization, marking the first lower-court first-session broadcast.
• The court refused to televise the subsequent bail hearing, explaining that protecting a defendant’s honor and sensitive personal and medical information outweighed the public’s right to view it.
• Responding to a call for swift proceedings, the bench set hearings at least weekly—primarily Fridays with possible Tuesday sessions—signaling an accelerated timetable.