Board of Audit and Inspection Chairman Choe Jae-hae smiles while speaking to reporters upon returning to work at his office in central Seoul, Thursday, after the Constitutional Court rejected an impeachment motion against him. Yonhap

The Constitutional Court unanimously rejected impeachment cases against Korea's top auditor and three prosecutors on Thursday.

They were among key government officials and prosecutors targeted by impeachment motions passed by the opposition-led National Assembly. Such impeachments were one of President Yoon Suk Yeol's justifications for declaring martial law on Dec. 3, as he claimed they paralyzed the government's functions and destroyed the constitutional order.

Attention is now focused on whether Thursday's court decisions will have any influence on the verdict in Yoon's own impeachment trial over his martial law declaration. The ruling in his trial is expected soon.

The court said it found no grounds to impeach Choe Jae-hae, chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection of Korea (BAI). The Assembly passed an impeachment motion against Choe on Dec. 5, based on allegations of legal violations in audits related to the relocation of the presidential office, and a targeted audit of Rep. Jeon Hyun-heui, the former Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission chairperson and a current lawmaker of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), along with other cases.

"The BAI conducted an audit to determine whether legal procedures were followed in the decision-making process regarding the relocation of the presidential office and residence. There are no circumstances indicating that the audit was insufficient," the court ruled, dismissing the impeachment 98 days after the case was submitted.

The court also rejected the claim that the BAI's audit of Jeon was "intended to pressure her into resigning."

Following the court's decision, Choe immediately resumed his duties.

“I sincerely thank the Constitutional Court justices for their wise decision," he said.

Lee Chang-soo, chief of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, speaks to reporters as he arrives at his office in southern Seoul, Thursday, following the Constitutional Court's decision to reject an impeachment motion against him. Yonhap

The court also unanimously dismissed impeachment motions against three senior prosecutors — Lee Chang-soo, chief of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, Cho Sang-won, deputy chief prosecutor at the same office, and Choi Jae-hun, head of the office's second anti-corruption investigation division.

Their cases centered on the prosecutors' handling of a stock manipulation investigation involving BMW dealer Deutsche Motors, which implicated first lady Kim Keon Hee. The Assembly accused the prosecutors of giving preferential treatment to Kim and not going through an adequate review process before deciding not to indict her.

However, the court ruled that their investigative actions fell within their discretionary authority, finding no serious constitutional or legal violations.

The ruling People Power Party (PPP) hailed the unanimous decision on the four impeachment cases as “a landmark ruling that reaffirms the rule of law in Korea, which delivers a legal blow to the DPK's reckless political impeachments.”

The presidential office also welcomed the court's decision.

“The Constitutional Court's rejection of all four impeachment cases, which lacked clear grounds from the start, serves as a warning against the opposition's excessive use of impeachment,” a statement from the presidential spokesperson reads. “We hope public officials can swiftly return to their duties so that state affairs can return to normal.”

The DPK emphasized that there are still unresolved issues regarding the actions of both Choe and the three prosecutors.

“While Choe's actions were not serious enough to warrant removal from office, some illegal conduct was confirmed,” Rep. Jo Seoung-lae, the DPK's chief spokesperson, stated in a written briefing.

“The Constitutional Court ruled that the impeachment grounds for the three prosecutors were not valid. However, many unresolved questions and suspicious links remain regarding the Deutsche Motors stock manipulation investigation.”

The DPK emphasized the urgent need for a swift ruling on Yoon's impeachment trial.