[Police Must Change to Survive]<2> From Burning Sun to Choi Sook-hyun... The First Step to Police Trust, 'Fair Investigation'

Revisions to the Criminal Procedure Act Establish Horizontal Relationship Between Prosecution and Police... Major Transformation in 100 Years of Police History
Investigation Authority Adjustment Is Not Simply About Expanding Police Power... Reforms Must Proceed in Parallel
Now Fact-Finding Is Entirely the Police's Responsibility... Controversies Like Leaks from the Start

The era of prosecution and police investigation rights adjustment, transitioning to a 'horizontal relationship' between the prosecution and the police, has begun. To prevent side effects from the strengthening of police authority, the introduction of the autonomous police system, which aims to realize the principle of 'checks and balances,' is also expected soon. The police, which started as the Police Bureau of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in 1919, are now facing the most significant 'great transformation' period in their 100-year history. However, there is still a long way to go to become a police force truly trusted by the public. The urgent task is for the police themselves to be reborn as an institution that democratically and efficiently controls the powers granted to them. Accordingly, this paper will examine the core issues of police reform?fair law enforcement, political neutrality, and democratic control?over three installments.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] Public distrust of the police fundamentally stems from disputes over fairness, such as excessive investigation and suppression and selective investigation. Those who feel wronged and cannot trust the police first turn to the prosecution. Prosecutorial reform has balanced the scales between the prosecution and the police. However, if the police fail to overcome themselves, that horizontal relationship will not be sustainable.

The police have gained the authority to close cases independently. From the public's perspective, the burden of undergoing double investigations by both the police and prosecution has been reduced. However, as seen in major cases such as the serial murders by Lee Chun-jae, the stepchild case of Ko Yu-jeong, and the Burning Sun gate, public scrutiny of police fairness remains sharp.

This was also clearly revealed in the recent case of the late athlete Choi Sook-hyun's abuse. At the National Assembly confirmation hearing on the 20th, Kim Chang-ryong, the nominee for the new Commissioner General of the National Police Agency, responded somewhat self-deprecatingly to a question from Lee Hae-sik, a member of the National Assembly's Administrative and Security Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, who pointed out that the complaint from the late Choi's side specified that the prosecution, not the police, should investigate. Kim said, "I think the victim's side trusted the prosecution's investigation."

The police are also frequent targets of criticism for excessive investigation. Representative examples include the deaths of Baek Nam-gi, the Ssangyong Motor incident, and the Yongsan incident. The National Police Agency's Human Rights Violation Incident Investigation Committee revealed that during the Yongsan incident, the police command forcibly proceeded with an operation despite anticipating the risk of fire and other dangers, resulting in six casualties.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

This distrust extends to recent public criticism of the police regarding the 'President shoe-throwing incident.' The police applied for an arrest warrant for Jeong Chang-ok (57), who threw a shoe at the president, stating that "the matter is very serious." However, the court dismissed the warrant, citing a lack of sufficient grounds and necessity for detention. Criticism that the warrant application was a 'show of deference' to the current government, which is promoting institutional improvements favorable to the police, is a natural outcome.

Professor Jeong Wan of Kyung Hee University Law School emphasized, "Citizens who have long witnessed the police applying different investigation methods depending on the case naturally come to doubt the police's fairness," and stressed, "Institutional improvements are needed to guarantee that the same results would come out regardless of who conducts the investigation."

There is also an opinion that internal efforts within the police have limitations as a method to achieve this. Professor Lee Woong-hyuk of Konkuk University's Department of Police Science said, "Transparency must be ensured starting from personnel appointments in the command line." When appointments of top officials, from the Commissioner General to regional chiefs, are made free from political influence, disputes over fairness can disappear.

Furthermore, as the police have stepped out of the prosecution's investigative command, securing police expertise remains a significant challenge. Professor Lee pointed out, "I saw the police commissioner nominee say regarding the late Park Won-soon, former mayor of Seoul, that he would 'wait and see the prosecution's investigation before making a judgment,' which undermines the police's investigative autonomy," and added, "The police must demonstrate the capability to initiate and resolve investigations independently." Professor Jeong also stated, "Before seeking help from external experts, the police themselves must strive to secure investigative expertise," and "Efforts to organize and strengthen internal systems are prerequisites for strengthening police authority."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.