Police Suspect Identity Disclosure Rules 'Like Nose Rings on the Nose'... "Checklist Is Useless"

Clarify Disclosure Standards for Consistency
National Police Agency to Submit Opinion on Mugshot Release Consent to the National Assembly

As controversy continues over the disclosure of criminal identities stemming from the Busan spinning kick incident, there are calls to clarify the police's criteria for identity disclosure, which remain ambiguous.

Jeong Yoo-jeong, who murdered a peer woman met through a tutoring brokerage application (app), dismembered the body, and abandoned it. Photo by MBN

Police Checklist Also Has Gaps... Operated Separately by Each Metropolitan Police Agency

According to a comprehensive report by Asia Economy on the 16th, the current police checklist for reviewing identity disclosure (for murder crimes) is categorized into ▲cruelty and serious harm ▲sufficient evidence ▲public interest ▲whether the suspect is a juvenile ▲restrictions (such as serious infringement of victim's human rights), among others. The Identity Disclosure Committee decides whether to disclose identities based on discussions following evaluations using the checklist for each crime.

There are criticisms that the checklist referenced by the Identity Disclosure Committee is insufficient, allowing for arbitrary interpretation. The 'cruelty and serious harm' section of the checklist is subdivided into 16 items, including 'causing continuous fear and pain to the victim during the crime,' 'multiple victims,' 'suspect is a public figure or celebrity attracting national attention,' and 'possibility of other similar crimes.'

The Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Specific Violent Crimes states only that 'the disclosure of the suspect's face and other information applies when the crime method is cruel and serious harm has occurred in a specific violent crime case.'

Professor Lee Soo-jung of the Department of Criminal Psychology at Kyonggi University said, "It is difficult to clearly distinguish what actions constitute cruelty and serious harm," adding, "It seems necessary to concretize this by standardizing crime names." She further stated, "Clear standards are needed on whether failed attempted murder is included as a serious crime and whether identity disclosure is possible when the crime name changes after referral, while the suspect is still in defendant status."

Currently, the police operate Identity Disclosure Committees separately by metropolitan police agencies, with each holding decision-making authority and responsibility. It was also confirmed that there are no separate criteria for including women when forming these committees. A police official stated, "When forming the committee, the gender ratio is naturally considered."

Experts Call for Standardization of Crime Names and Legal Framework for Establishing Identity Disclosure Committees

Because the criteria are ambiguous, whether the suspect's identity is disclosed varies even for similar violent crimes. Therefore, there are calls to specify evaluation criteria so that disclosure can be predicted based on the crime name.

For example, Jeong Yoo-jeong (female, 23), who killed a peer woman she met through a tutoring application, dismembered and abandoned the body, had her identity disclosed because "the seriousness and cruelty of the crime were recognized, and there was a significant need for public interest." In contrast, in October last year, the Gwangmyeong Police Station did not hold an identity disclosure committee meeting for a male suspect in his 40s accused of murder. Although this man brutally killed his wife and two children, the identity was not disclosed because the victims were family members.

The Youth Lawyers' Association for a New Future stated, "The identity disclosure system should operate in a way that respects the principle of presumption of innocence, a fundamental principle of criminal law," and added, "If disclosure is to be made, legal grounds should be established to delegate authority to enforcement ordinances rather than internal police guidelines." They also said, "Legal grounds should be established to specify the basis for establishing identity disclosure committees, their composition, and judgment criteria."

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice is discussing the fact that the identity disclosure system does not apply when the suspect is in defendant status, as well as methods such as taking and releasing mugshots. In this regard, the National Police Agency is reportedly preparing to submit an opinion letter to the National Assembly soon, containing consent from the public to disclose photos that allow identification of suspects.

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