Police: "Forming a Task Force for Complete Prosecution Reform... Increasing Personnel and Budget to Prevent Investigation Delays"

Lee Eun-ae, Head of Investigation and Structure Reform Team
Police Investigation Volume Expected to Increase
No Cases of Investigation Rights Abuse
Various Measures Created Over the Past Year
Difficult to Agree with Prosecutor's Unconstitutionality Claims

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The National Police Agency stated that regarding the transfer of major investigative duties from the prosecution due to the enactment of the so-called ‘Prosecution Investigation Authority Complete Abolition’ law, it will "focus on expanding investigative infrastructure such as personnel and budget to prevent delays in investigations." To this end, the National Police Agency plans to form a task force (TF) by the law’s enforcement date and consult with related government departments.

Lee Eun-ae, head of the Investigation Structure Reform Team at the National Police Agency, said in a briefing on the morning of the 4th, "Since last year’s adjustment of investigative authority, the police workload has increased significantly, and even the amendment of the Criminal Procedure Act alone caused a considerable change in workload." According to police statistics, the average case processing period increased by 8.6 days from 55.6 days in 2020 to 64.2 days after last year’s investigative authority adjustment. On the front lines, there has been a tendency to avoid investigative departments due to excessive workload. Concerns have been raised that this symptom will accelerate further with the new Prosecution Investigation Authority Complete Abolition law. However, Lee said, "With the promulgation of the revised Criminal Procedure Act and the Prosecutors’ Office Act, the scope of direct prosecution by the prosecution has been reduced from six major crimes to two major crimes, so the total volume of police investigations is expected to increase, but the exact level will ultimately be determined by the presidential decree on the Prosecutors’ Office Act."

Regarding concerns about police abuse of investigative authority, Lee said, "It seems accurate to say that the amount of controlled investigations within the total investigations in our country will increase," and emphasized, "There have been no cases of police abuse even one year after the adjustment of investigative authority." She added, "There were concerns that if cases were concentrated on the police, they would ‘botch it’ or ‘abuse investigative authority,’ but after one year of trial and error, various safeguards have been established." She also stated that she does not consider there to have been cases of human rights violations. On the expectation that requests for supplementary investigations by the prosecution will increase, she said, "This is an area that requires future discussion." The National Police Agency plans to form a task force and discuss this through the police-prosecution consultative body.

Regarding the prosecution’s consistent claim that the Prosecution Investigation Authority Complete Abolition is unconstitutional, Lee said, "The essence of the warrant principle is not the prosecution’s application but the judge’s judgment. It is difficult to agree that the right to request a warrant means granting investigative authority to the prosecution." She explained, "In the original constitution, warrants were issued by judges upon application by investigative agencies, not prosecutors. Then, in the 1962 5th constitutional amendment, the warrant request right was included in the constitution," adding, "There is doubt as to whether the warrant request right is a provision to monopolize or guarantee the prosecution’s investigative authority."

Immediately after the law was promulgated the day before, the National Police Agency issued a statement saying, "We will ensure smooth criminal investigations through the establishment of a responsible investigation system and continuous expansion of investigative infrastructure such as personnel and budget," and "We will faithfully carry out our original duties without wavering and resolve concerns raised by some through mutual respect and cooperation with the prosecution to gain greater public trust."

Kim Chang-ryong, Commissioner of the National Police Agency, also posted a letter on the internal network that afternoon, stating, "The passed amendment reduces the scope in which prosecutors can initiate investigations from six major crimes to corruption and economic crimes, but the police investigation system maintains the existing framework without major changes," and "We believe that mutual respect and cooperation between the police and prosecution is the best way to serve the public, so let us steadfastly carry out our duties and prove our determination and capabilities step by step." Commissioner Kim also acknowledged, "We are well aware that the frontline investigative field has been burdened since last year’s adjustment of investigative authority," and added, "We will continue efforts to boost the morale of field police officers along with expanding investigative infrastructure such as personnel and budget."

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