One Month After Implementing 'Susakwonjohjeong', Police Close 3 Out of 10 Cases Themselves

Prosecutor's Request for Reinvestigation at 1.6% Level
On-Site Implementation Crucial... "Efforts to Prevent Deficiencies"

The signboard of the National Investigation Headquarters hung at the Seoul Seodaemun-gu Police Agency on the 4th./Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] During the one month since the revised Criminal Procedure Act, which grants the police primary authority to conclude investigations, came into effect, it was found that 3 out of 10 cases investigated by the police were closed as ‘no prosecution’.

According to the National Police Agency’s National Investigation Headquarters (NIH) on the 3rd, the total number of cases handled by the police in January was 67,061. Among these, 41,331 cases (61.6%) were sent to the prosecution, 19,543 cases (29.1%) were decided by the police as ‘no prosecution’ due to lack of charges, and 6,187 cases (9.2%) were processed as investigation suspension (formerly suspension of prosecution).

Requests and demands such as prosecutors’ requests for supplementary investigations and re-investigation requests for no prosecution cases totaled 1,671 cases (2.5%). This is lower than the prosecutor’s re-direction rate for referred cases before the implementation of the investigative authority adjustment (3.5%). However, since prosecutors can retain and review records for 90 days regarding no prosecution decisions and for 30 days regarding investigation suspension decisions, the total number of cases may increase.

Specifically, there were 1,268 requests for supplementary investigations on referred cases, 310 re-investigation requests on no prosecution decisions, and 93 correction requests on investigation suspension decisions. Among these, the re-investigation requests on no prosecution decisions have drawn attention. This is the most significant change since the police gained primary authority to conclude investigations after the investigative authority adjustment, and it has sparked controversy recently in connection with allegations of assault on a taxi driver involving Deputy Minister of Justice Lee Yong-gu. Statistically, the number of re-investigation requests by prosecutors compared to police no prosecution decisions is about 1.6%, which is not high. The NIH explained that most re-investigation requests were for simple corrections such as legal errors or missing attachments rather than serious reasons warranting a change to the no prosecution decision itself. On the other hand, this also indicates that external control mechanisms are functioning properly, which can be viewed positively.

Additionally, 292 objections from complainants and others against no prosecution decisions were received by the end of January, recording an objection rate of 1.5%. Since objections can be filed by related parties without a time limit, the NIH expects this rate to increase. When objections are filed after a no prosecution decision, the case is automatically referred to the prosecution.

An NIH official said, “We are analyzing the causes of investigative shortcomings identified through analysis and conducting repeated training to prevent the recurrence of the same deficiencies,” and added, “We will continue to consider ways to ensure that the purpose of the revised law, which establishes a cooperative relationship between the police and prosecution, is firmly established in the field and to reduce the burden on field officers.”

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