Conditional Prosecution Suspension for Drug Offenders with Strong Treatment and Rehabilitation Willingness... Government Pilot Project Underway

Providing Customized Treatment Programs
Aiming for Complete Social Reintegration and Recidivism Prevention

A pilot project will be implemented to select drug users with a strong willingness for treatment and rehabilitation and promote their reintegration into society through conditional suspension of prosecution.

On the 19th, the government announced that it will pilot a 'customized treatment and social rehabilitation conditional suspension of prosecution' model that links judicial, treatment, and rehabilitation measures for drug users. This system focuses on healthy social reintegration by providing treatment programs tailored to the level of addiction by addiction specialists to drug offenders who have a clear willingness for treatment and rehabilitation.

Overview of the 'Customized Treatment and Social Rehabilitation Conditional Suspension of Prosecution' Model Linking Judiciary, Treatment, and Rehabilitation.

This conditional suspension of prosecution is a system that suspends prosecution on the condition that drug offenders undergo treatment and recidivism prevention education, along with drug monitoring and counseling by probation officers, for six months. An expert committee, including addiction specialists and psychiatrists, assesses the level of addiction and rehabilitation potential of the subjects and provides personalized treatment and rehabilitation programs combined with drug monitoring by probation offices.

First, the prosecution selects participants among drug users and notifies the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS). The expert committee formed by the MFDS proposes appropriate rehabilitation programs according to the subject's addiction level and the necessity of treatment linkage, which the prosecution refers to when imposing the conditional suspension of prosecution. According to the conditional suspension of prosecution, the subjects participate in treatment and rehabilitation programs at treatment protection institutions under the Ministry of Health and Welfare and addiction rehabilitation centers under the MFDS, while their compliance with the conditions is monitored through drug surveillance by the Ministry of Justice’s probation office.

Kim Myung-ho, Director of Drug Safety Planning at the MFDS, said, "We expect this pilot project of the judicial-treatment-rehabilitation linkage model to establish a system that ensures continuity of addiction treatment and rehabilitation for drug users, enabling their successful reintegration into society." Park Jae-eok, Head of the Drug and Organized Crime Division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, stated, "This linkage model strictly selects subjects as simple users with a strong willingness to quit drugs for treatment and rehabilitation purposes. Furthermore, if they fail to meet the conditions, such as committing recidivism, the suspension of prosecution will be revoked and prosecution will proceed according to the principle, ensuring that subjects sincerely participate in the program and achieve treatment and rehabilitation.

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