Court orders South Korean President Yoon released from jail
SEOUL, South Korea — A South Korean court on Friday ordered impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol to be released from jail, more than a month after he was arrested and indicted over his short-lived imposition of martial law.
The decision by the Seoul Central District Court would allow Yoon to stand his criminal trial while not being physically detained. The hearings in his impeachment trial concluded in late February and the court is expected to rule soon on whether to uphold his impeachment or remove him from office.
The Seoul Central District Court said it accepted Yoon’s request to be released from jail because the legal period of his formal arrest expired before he was indicted in late January. The court said the investigative agency that detained Yoon before his formal arrest didn’t have legal rights to investigate the criminal rebellion charges.
Investigators have alleged that the martial-law decree amounted to rebellion. If he’s convicted of that offense, he would face the death penalty or life imprisonment.
Yoon’s martial law decree, which involved the dispatch of troops to the National Assembly, evoked traumatic memories of past military rules among many South Koreans. The decree lasted only six hours as enough lawmakers managed to get into an assembly hall and voted to overturn it unanimously. Yoon later argued his decree was only meant to inform the people of the danger of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, which undermined his agenda and impeached top officials.
If the Constitutional Court upholds Yoon’s impeachment, he will be officially thrown out of office and a national election will be held to choose his successor within two months.
Senate confirms Trump lawyer Emil Bove for appeals court
The Senate confirmed former Trump lawyer Emil Bove as a federal appeals court judge as Republicans dismissed whistleblower complaints about his conduct at the Justice Department.
UCLA reaches $6 million settlement with Jewish students over campus protests
The settlement comes after Jewish students and a professor argued their civil rights were violated when pro-Palestinian protesters blocked access to campus buildings during 2024 demonstrations.
8.8-magnitude earthquake sets off tsunami warnings in Japan, Alaska and Hawaii
One of the world's strongest earthquakes struck Russia's Far East Wednesday, causing a tsunami in the northern Pacific region and setting off warnings for Alaska, Hawaii and south toward New Zealand.
Senators introduce resolution supporting prevention task force RFK Jr. may disband
The task force makes recommendations for medical screenings that doctors' groups rely on and that guide what preventive services most insurance covers without copay.
The Manhattan gunman believed he had CTE. What does that mean?
The gunman accused of killing four people in New York City suspected he had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE — a degenerative brain disease often associated with football players.
In a first, the Senate confirms a new CDC director
Susan Monarez is the first director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to require Senate confirmation. She's also the first director without a medical degree in more than 70 years.