Democratic Party lawmakers Kim Seung-won, Kim Han-kyu, Park Sang-hyuk and Lee Hae-sik, members of the party’s Criminal Procedure Act revision task force, submit a partial revision bill at the National Assembly on Thursday. Photo by Asia Today
July 9 (Asia Today) -- South Korea's ruling Democratic Party introduced a revision to the Criminal Procedure Act on Thursday that would abolish prosecutors' supplementary investigation power.
The bill would remove prosecutors as investigative agents while strengthening their authority to request supplementary investigations from police. The party said the measures are intended to reduce investigative gaps.
The Democratic Party's task force on revising the Criminal Procedure Act submitted the bill to the National Assembly's bill office. The proposal would completely separate investigation and indictment. It would abolish prosecutors' supplementary investigation power while strengthening their authority to request further investigations and introducing the power to request the replacement of investigators, increasing oversight of investigative agencies.
Kim Han-kyu, the party's senior deputy floor leader for policy, told reporters after submitting the bill that the revision is designed to adjust investigative authority, strengthen checks and supervision over investigative agencies and enhance protections for victims and complainants ahead of the planned Oct. 2 launch of new investigation and prosecution agencies.
