[Exclusive] Yoon Seok-yeol "Protect Human Rights During Searches"... Proposes 'Jeong Jin-ung Prevention Measures'

Guaranteeing the Right to Counsel Participation Beyond the Seized Party... Strengthening Human Rights Protection Throughout the Entire Search and Seizure Process

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] It has been confirmed that Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol has instructed to guarantee the right of defense counsel to participate during the seizure and search of information storage devices such as mobile phones. Although the presence of defense counsel during seizure and search is guaranteed by law, this directive aims to protect the human rights of the person subject to seizure as much as possible through detailed guidelines within the prosecution. Considering the recent controversy when Deputy Chief Prosecutor Jeong Jin-ung of the Gwangju District Prosecutors' Office conducted a seizure and search on Prosecutor Han Dong-hoon without notifying the defense counsel during the investigation into collusion between prosecutors and media, this can also be interpreted as a "Jeong Jin-ung prevention measure."

According to the legal community on the 29th, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office has revised its regulations containing principles for protecting human rights throughout the entire process of collecting, analyzing, and managing digital evidence, which will be implemented starting January next year. The will of Prosecutor General Yoon, who emphasized human rights protection as the top priority during prosecution investigations, was fully reflected.

First, the lead prosecutor in charge of the case must guarantee the right of defense counsel to participate when seizing electronic information stored in information storage devices such as mobile phones. The current Supreme Prosecutors' Office regulations only guarantee the person subject to seizure a simple "opportunity to participate," but from now on, the right to participate will also be granted to defense counsel other than the person subject to seizure, encouraging its utilization. Although the Criminal Procedure Act allows prosecutors, defendants, or defense counsel to participate in the execution of seizure and search warrants, this is explicitly stated in the internal regulations of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office to minimize exceptions.

In particular, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office has stipulated that if the person subject to seizure and the defense counsel refuse to participate in the seizure and search, methods that can guarantee reliability and expertise should be sought. Furthermore, if the seizure and search proceed without the participation of the person subject to seizure or defense counsel due to reasons such as the person's whereabouts being unknown, delayed participation, or refusal to participate, another participant will be assigned to observe in accordance with the Criminal Procedure Act. This also includes cases where participation was discontinued without justifiable reasons during the seizure and search.

Additionally, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office requires that even when it is impossible to conduct a seizure and search on-site and the information storage devices or other seizure items are taken out to a location outside the place of seizure, the person subject to seizure or defense counsel must participate. This means that the entire process of seizure and search will be explained to the person subject to seizure to effectively guarantee their right to participate.

Within the prosecution, this revision of regulations is seen as closely related to the controversy over Deputy Chief Prosecutor Jeong's abuse of authority.

Previously, the investigation team into the collusion between prosecutors and media faced legal controversy in July when they executed a seizure and search on Prosecutor Han's mobile phone SIM card without notifying the defense counsel. At that time, when Han's defense counsel protested, saying, "According to the Criminal Procedure Act, the defense counsel must be notified of the time and place of warrant execution, so why was this not done?" the investigation team reportedly responded, "In urgent cases, prior notification is not required."

However, suspicion grew as the reason of "urgent execution" was given even though more than a week had passed since the seizure and search warrant was issued by the court. Typically, in urgent seizure and search cases, execution begins immediately after the warrant is issued. Within the prosecution, many opinions followed that since the defense counsel did not participate before the execution of the seizure and search, it could not be considered obstruction of the seizure and search.

Some interpret that the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's response as a "Jeong Jin-ung prevention measure" is in line with the "Han Dong-hoon Prevention Act," which was instructed for review last month by Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae. The "Han Dong-hoon Prevention Act" is a bill that would allow forcibly unlocking the suspect's smartphone password, with Minister Choo targeting Prosecutor Han by stating, "The suspect is maliciously hiding the phone password and obstructing the investigation."

However, opposition parties and progressive organizations have opposed it, calling it "a concept that goes against human rights investigations." Facing continued backlash, Minister Choo stepped back, saying it is "at the research stage, not a bill promotion," but the aftershock of the Justice Minister blocking the suspect's right to defense continues.

A lawyer formerly with the prosecution said, "The suspect's right to defense is already guaranteed by law and various regulations within the prosecution, but it is meaningful that the Supreme Prosecutors' Office has concretized the right of defense counsel to participate for the person subject to seizure through separate revisions." He added, "Compared to the 'Han Dong-hoon Prevention Act,' which has a high possibility of being unconstitutional and unrealistic, the human rights protection measures during the seizure and search process are likely aligned with the current reform direction of the Ministry of Justice and the prosecution."

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