"Reporting Marijuana for Neighbor's Smoking... Repeated Obstruction of Police Duties"

Recently, a report was filed to the police in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, claiming, "A neighbor seems to be smoking marijuana in the bathroom." Upon investigation, it turned out to be a false report made to harass a neighbor who was smoking a cigarette. The responding officer expressed concern, saying, "We often expend energy on malicious complaints, which raises the risk that we may not be available for truly urgent incidents."

Police Officers Harassed by Malicious Complaints [Image Source=ChatGPT]

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Field police officers are repeatedly subjected to obstruction of official duties, ranging from verbal abuse and assault to false reports and malicious complaints. There are increasing calls for urgent institutional measures to prevent the undermining of legitimate law enforcement activities.

According to the National Police Agency on August 5, crimes of obstruction of official duties increased by 19%, from 7,292 cases in 2021 to 8,665 cases last year. During the same period, special obstruction of official duties increased by 42%, from 382 cases to 541 cases.

Assaults and verbal abuse against police officers have become commonplace. In April, in Songpa District, Seoul, a police officer responding to a report about an intoxicated person sleeping in a store was assaulted while asking the individual to leave. In Gangdong District, a police lieutenant was subjected to verbal abuse and physical assault after responding to a report of a disturbance in a guest room. One officer shared, "There are even cases where the perpetrator files a complaint, claiming to have been hurt by the police response." There have also been repeated petitions to the National Petition System, accusing officers of abuse of authority in retaliation for traffic enforcement.

The structure in which officers are repeatedly required to justify even legitimate law enforcement actions is increasing police fatigue. According to the Audit Office of the National Police Agency, illegal acts and repeated complaints by citizens increased by 24%, from 77,175 cases in 2022 to 95,629 cases in 2023.

In addition, the abolition of the system allowing police to reject unfounded complaints and accusations has further increased the burden of having to accept and investigate even unreasonable cases. Previously, if a complaint did not meet formal requirements or if there was no clear suspicion of a crime, police could refuse to accept it. Now, all cases must be accepted in principle.

A detective in Seoul stated, "There are now many cases where we have to investigate absurd complaints, such as a neighbor filing a report simply because someone did not greet them or looked at them. We are required to initiate investigations even for matters that are hardly criminal, which significantly increases our workload."

Experts stressed the urgent need to strengthen institutional responses. Lee Woonghyuk, a professor of police science at Konkuk University, said, "The police organization must come up with measures to strictly protect law enforcement authority so that officers can carry out their duties according to law and principle." Lee Geonsu, a professor of police administration at Baekseok University, stated, "There is also a need to consider a system in which a third-party neutral body can review and dismiss habitual false accusations or malicious complaints in advance."

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