▲ The amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act, which aims to abolish supplementary investigation powers, is passed during the 3rd plenary session of the extraordinary National Assembly on July 31, amid a boycott by People Power Party lawmakers.
A constitutional petition filed by the People Power Party against the amended Criminal Procedure Act, which abolishes prosecutors' direct and supplementary investigation powers, will undergo a formal review by the Constitutional Court.
According to legal circles on the 26th, the Constitutional Court formally referred the constitutional complaint requesting a review of the unconstitutionality of the partially amended Criminal Procedure Act, filed by the People Power Party on the 13th, to a full bench the previous day.
Under the Constitutional Court Act, a designated panel consisting of three justices determines whether a constitutional petition meets the legal requirements.
If the designated panel finds no legal flaws, the case is referred to the full bench, where all nine justices deliberate on the matter.
The People Power Party stated that it filed the constitutional petition on the 13th on the grounds that the amended Criminal Procedure Act violates: ▲ the principle of due process and personal liberty; ▲ rights inherent in the warrant principle and prosecutors' authority to request warrants; ▲ the right to a speedy and fair trial; ▲ the presumption of innocence; ▲ crime victims' rights to make statements in trial proceedings; and ▲ the principle against excessive restrictions.
It also cited that subordinating prosecutors to the results of police investigations and undermining the checks-and-balances function in the criminal justice system violates the principle of the functional separation of powers.
The amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act, which completely abolishes prosecutors' direct investigation authority, was processed by the Democratic Party of Korea during a plenary session of the National Assembly late last month and passed a Cabinet meeting earlier this month.
Starting in October when the amended Criminal Procedure Act takes effect, investigation and prosecution will be completely separated, banning prosecutors from conducting direct investigations and abolishing their supplementary investigation powers.
However, prosecutors will still be able to request supplementary investigations from judicial police officers.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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