Domestic Abusers to Face Stalking-Level Measures, Including Electronic Monitoring

[Anchor]

Police provide smartwatches to victims of relationship-based crimes, including domestic violence. When a victim presses the button, an emergency report is filed and their location is transmitted so that police can be dispatched. Electronic ankle monitors, which are location-tracking devices managed by the Ministry of Justice, serve to monitor offenders when they enter restricted areas such as a victim's residence. Previously, these monitors could be attached for sexual or homicide offenses, and starting the year before last, pre-trial electronic monitoring was also made applicable to stalking offenders. Now, going a step further, authorities have decided to push for measures to put electronic ankle monitors on domestic violence offenders as well.

Here is a report by reporter Bae Seong-jae.

[Reporter]

Three days ago in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, a man in his 70s, surnamed A, allegedly stabbed his estranged wife to death.

The wife had reported her husband to the police eight times since last April for domestic violence and other issues, and had even obtained a court-issued restraining order.

The murder of a mother-in-law in Songpa-gu, Seoul, on the 11th, and the murder of a wife in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, last month in front of their 5-year-old daughter, were both incidents that occurred while the perpetrators were under restraining orders issued for domestic violence charges.

As severe relationship-based crimes originating from domestic violence continue to occur, the police have unveiled a plan to elevate measures against domestic violence offenders to the level of stalking crimes.

First, the requirements for applying "Temporary Measure No. 5," which detains offenders in detention centers or holding cells, will be eased. In addition, penalties for violating "emergency temporary measures" such as restraining orders or eviction orders will be elevated from fines to prison sentences and criminal fines, matching the level applied to stalking crimes.

A legislative amendment to attach location-tracking electronic devices, commonly known as electronic ankle monitors, to domestic violence offenders is also under review.

While stalking offenders can be ordered by a court to wear electronic devices, domestic violence offenders previously lacked the legal grounds to do so.

However, critics point out that beyond monitoring approaches to a victim's residence or workplace using electronic monitors, fundamental measures are needed to block the offender's approach in other locations as well.

[Oh Yoon-sung / Professor of Police Administration, Soonchunhyang University : For example, when they come within a 100-meter radius of the victim, an alarm can automatically notify the relevant police station and the victim...]

Since both devices are equipped with location-tracking capabilities, methods such as measuring and monitoring the distance between the offender's electronic monitor and the victim's smartwatch are being discussed.

However, because management authority is divided between the Ministry of Justice and the police, seamless information sharing alongside the integration of device management systems has been pointed out as a prerequisite task.

(Video Editing: So Ji-hye, Design: Cho Su-in, Lee Jae-jun)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.