11 Democratic Party Lawmakers Propose Bill to Partially Allow Prosecutors' Supplementary Investigation Authority

[Anchor]

The Democratic Party and the People Power Party are in a sharp standoff over the issue of abolishing the prosecution's authority for supplementary investigations. Amid this, 11 lawmakers from the Democratic Party have proposed a bill that opposes a total abolition and allows for supplementary investigations in exceptional cases.

Park Jae-yeon reports.

[Reporter]

The Democratic Party held a general meeting of lawmakers yesterday (July 14) regarding the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act, which centers on the total abolition of the prosecution's supplementary investigation authority.

Floor Leader Han Byung-do emphasized deliberation and discussion, stating, "I am well aware of the concerns raised in some quarters," but placed weight on supplementary measures following a complete abolition.

[Han Byung-do/Democratic Party Floor Leader: We must complete the final puzzle of prosecution reform through the amendment of the Criminal Procedure Act, which focuses on the total abolition of the supplementary investigation authority.]

However, it is reported that several lawmakers raised opinions during the general meeting in favor of allowing exceptions for supplementary investigation authority.

Some Democratic Party lawmakers have jointly proposed an amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act that would allow prosecutors to conduct supplementary investigations in exceptional circumstances.

[Hong Ki-won/Democratic Party Lawmaker: If even a single victim is unfairly harmed as a result of a total ban on supplementary investigations, can we truly call that a successful reform?]

The scope of cases eligible for supplementary investigation includes sexual violence, violent crimes, child and elderly abuse, livelihood crimes such as voice phishing, cases with impending statutes of limitations, and cases where victims have filed objections.

Including Lawmaker Hong, the 11 lawmakers who participated as co-sponsors are Ko Min-jung, Kwak Sang-eon, Kim Nam-hee, Moon Jin-seok, and Mo Kyung-jong, among others.

Meanwhile, the People Power Party held a debate yesterday on the necessity of maintaining the prosecution's supplementary investigation authority, emphasizing that, as revealed in the Jang Yoon-ki case, police investigations relying on good faith are difficult to count on.

[Jung Jeung-sik/People Power Party Floor Leader: If even the prosecution's supplementary investigation authority is abolished, the minimum check-and-balance mechanism to prevent shoddy police investigations and abuse of investigative power could be neutralized.]

The People Power Party leadership announced that the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act they plan to propose this week will include "not only the maintenance of the supplementary investigation authority but also provisions to delete or modify the police's authority to close investigations."

(Video coverage: Oh Young-chun, Lee Seung-hwan, Shin Dong-hwan, Kim Yong-woo | Design: Kim Min-young)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.