National Council of Police Workplace Associations: "Stricter Police Discipline Raises Concerns Over Responsibility Avoidance and Passive Investigations"

[Financial News] The National Council of Police Workplace Associations called for caution regarding moves to strengthen disciplinary standards for serious misconduct, including distortion of the law and the leakage of critical investigative information, warning of possible side effects such as responsibility avoidance and passive investigations.
In a statement issued on the 23rd, the council said, "Strict disciplinary action is necessary," but added, "However, 'automatic severe punishment' is not fair discipline."
The Korean National Police Agency is seeking to strengthen disciplinary standards for serious misconduct, including distortion of the law, the acceptance of money or valuables in connection with investigations or crackdowns, and the leakage of critical investigative information, with dismissal or removal from office as the rule.
The council said, "There is no disagreement that police officers who deliberately distort investigations by using their positions and authority, accept money or hospitality, or intentionally leak critical investigative information must be held strictly accountable." However, it emphasized, "Restoring public trust in the police should not be limited to uniformly increasing the severity of disciplinary action." It argued that clear and fair standards are needed rather than simply harsher punishment.
The council argued in particular that strengthening penalties for distorting the law and leaking investigative information requires caution. In cases involving distortion of the law, intentionally distorting law enforcement to benefit or disadvantage a particular person must not be treated the same as differences in legal interpretation, errors in evaluating evidence, or mistakes in investigative judgment that arise while handling complex cases.
The same applies to leaks of investigative information. An act of intentionally providing critical investigative information in exchange for money or a solicitation, and negligence occurring in the course of handling official duties, should be treated differently in terms of the degree of responsibility after comprehensively considering the motive, purpose, intent, and outcome.
Ultimately, even if the conduct involves the same violation of the law, it should be judged differently based on intent and mistakes made during the investigation.
The council said, "If the perception takes hold that an officer may be subject to severe disciplinary action at any time merely because an investigative judgment was assessed differently after the fact, passive investigations aimed at avoiding responsibility will inevitably increase over proactive investigations." It argued, "Before strengthening disciplinary standards, the Korean National Police Agency must clearly distinguish intent from negligence and reasonably differentiate responsibility according to the motive and seriousness of the conduct and the actual consequences."
It continued, "Responsibility must not be concentrated solely on frontline personnel. If there was an improper order or faulty command, the person who issued it and those responsible for command and supervision must also be held appropriately accountable."
It emphasized, "We support strengthening fairness and accountability in the police. To strengthen police accountability, authorities must not simply increase the severity of disciplinary action; they must first improve the precision of assigning responsibility and the fairness of discipline."

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