President Lee Jae-myung emphasized the need for self-purification of the police's expanded power on the 4th, as the Cabinet approved an amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act that abolishes prosecutors' direct and supplementary investigation authority. With prosecutors' investigative powers sharply curtailed, the police have gained substantial investigative authority in return. Lee stressed the need for checks, saying, "I don't trust not only prosecutors but also the police to conduct investigations."
What Lee emphasized as he convened the Cabinet meeting and approved the Criminal Procedure Act amendment on the 4th was the prosecution's "accountability," along with concerns about the police. "The police will gain enormous power, and I cannot help but worry whether things will be completely safe going forward," Lee said. "The police's own sense of responsibility is very important." He added, "I worked as a lawyer for many years, but I couldn't trust investigations by the police, let alone the prosecution," urging that "sufficient preparations must be made in advance." Lee also called for the dismissal and removal of police officers who commit clear investigative misconduct, as well as the disclosure of disciplinary records.
Regarding the prosecution, he pointed out, "Over the past several decades, they have wielded excessive and concentrated power across the entire criminal justice system, from investigation to indictment and warrant requests." He added, "Under an abnormal criminal justice system, some groups within the prosecution have abused their authority to investigate for the purpose of indictment as if it were unlimited, repeatedly engaging in unrelated investigations, digging up dirt, and targeted probes to cover up existing cases or to punish predetermined individuals."
The Criminal Procedure Act amendment approved that day abolishes prosecutors' direct investigation authority and supplementary investigation authority, and consolidates the investigative authority into judicial police officers (police and the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency). Prosecutors will handle only the filing and maintenance of indictments at the Office of Public Prosecution, the successor to the prosecutors' office. Instead of supplementary investigation authority, the "supplementary investigation request authority," which allows prosecutors to request additional investigation from the police, is retained. This marks a fundamental change to the criminal justice system that has been maintained for more than 70 years.
The Democratic Party and the broader ruling bloc, which led the passage of the amendment, welcomed it as the completion of prosecution reform. Park Hae-chul, spokesperson for the Democratic Party, said, "Prosecution reform has reached another important turning point," adding, "We will do our best on follow-up legislation and institutional supplementation to complete a criminal justice system that the public can trust." Rep. Suh Young-kyo, chair of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, gave meaning to the reform, saying, "The core of the amendment is to track down criminals to the end and to protect victims more thoroughly." The Democratic Party plans to pursue institutional supplementation, including requiring that all cases involving seven major crimes such as child abuse and sex crimes be referred to prosecutors, in order to minimize investigative gaps.
The conservative camp, including the People Power Party, fiercely criticized the problems with the overhaul of the criminal justice system. Jang Dong-hyeok, leader of the People Power Party, held an emergency debate at the National Assembly that day and pointed out, "The abolition of supplementary investigation authority will lead to the abolition of the administration." Floor Leader Chung Jom-sik said, "President Lee is busy putting on a bulletproof vest to erase his own trial."
Independent Rep. Han Dong-hoon also held an emergency meeting at the National Assembly that day together with Kim Jin-ju, the victim of the Busan spin-kick assault case, and strongly criticized the government and ruling party. Han said, "Even the family of the late former President Roh Moo-hyun, who advocated for prosecution reform, does not want this now, yet Democratic Party politicians are ruining the judicial system with that revenge marketing and opening the gates of hell for criminals." Addressing Lee, Kim said, "I watched the Cabinet meeting, and I was very angry that he spoke about it as if it were someone else's problem. It was offensive."
