Prosecutor General's Office: "'Geomsu Wanbak' Bill is a Clear Constitutional Violation"… Completely Removes Prosecutors' Authority for Investigation, Arrest, and Detention (Comprehensive)

Seoul Seocho-dong Supreme Prosecutors' Office.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin, Legal Affairs Specialist] On the 15th, as the Democratic Party of Korea proposed amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act and the Prosecutors' Office Act containing the 'Complete Removal of Prosecutorial Investigation Rights (Geomsu Wanbak),' the Supreme Prosecutors' Office expressed the position that it is 'clearly unconstitutional.'

That afternoon, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office stated in a press release sent to the press corps, "After reviewing the proposed amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act and the Prosecutors' Office Act submitted to the National Assembly, the concerns we had were confirmed."

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office pointed out, "The so-called 'Geomsu Wanbak' bill monopolizes all criminal investigations to the police, and prosecutors are limited to reviewing only the investigation records conducted by the police. If there is insufficient evidence, the case is sent back to the police, and if there is sufficient evidence, the prosecutor's role is limited to filing charges with the court."

They continued, "This directly contradicts Article 12, Paragraph 3, and Article 16 of the Constitution, which define prosecutors as the authority to request warrants and as the main investigative body, making it clearly unconstitutional."

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office expressed concern, "If this bill is enacted, cases will be repeatedly transferred between the prosecution and the police, resulting in numerous acquittals in court due to poor prosecution. Wealthy and powerful criminals will be relieved by receiving assistance from their lawyers to avoid punishment, while crime victims and the public will suffer more due to prolonged cases and inadequate recovery of damages."

Additionally, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office added, "Especially since this bill is crucial to protecting the life, safety, bodily freedom, and property of the people, attempting to complete all legislative procedures within just two weeks without sufficient discussion may constitute a violation of the constitutional due process."

Finally, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office stated, "The Prosecutor General will attend the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee's urgent inquiry session on Monday, the 18th, to provide detailed answers regarding the specific contents."

What Does the Democratic Party's Proposed Amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act and Prosecutors' Office Act Contain?

On the same day, the Democratic Party proposed amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act and Prosecutors' Office Act that nearly eliminate prosecutors' investigative rights, including direct investigative authority over six major crimes.

The proposed amendment to the Prosecutors' Office Act deleted all provisions granting prosecutors investigative authority over the six major crimes, which had allowed direct investigation by prosecutors, in Article 4 (Duties of Prosecutors), which adjusts investigative authority between the police and prosecution, leaving prosecutors only with the duties of filing and maintaining public prosecution.

However, a new provision was added allowing investigation only of official crimes committed by police officers or officials belonging to the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (Gongu-cheo).

Furthermore, in the Prosecutors' Office Act's organizational provisions (Article 16) and other sections, all references to 'Prosecutorial Investigation Officers' were changed to 'Prosecutorial Officers,' and Article 46, Paragraph 1, which allowed prosecutorial investigators to conduct investigations under the prosecutor's command, was amended to limit their role to assisting prosecutors in filing or maintaining public prosecution.

The amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act completely deleted Article 196, which provided the basis for prosecutors' investigations, and stipulated in Article 197, Paragraph 4, that when prosecutors perform criminal investigation duties under other laws, they shall be regarded as judicial police officers for the application of the Criminal Procedure Act.

Additionally, in provisions related to investigations such as the suspect's emergency arrest (Article 200-3), detention (Article 201), compulsory measures without a warrant (Article 217), and suspect interrogation (Article 241), all references to prosecutors were removed, leaving only judicial police officers as the responsible parties.

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