Criminal law professors and researchers across the country expressed serious concern on July 30 over the ruling party's push to submit and railroad a revision to the Criminal Procedure Act, which includes abolishing prosecutors' supplementary investigation rights, at the plenary session of the National Assembly, stating they "express serious concern over the reform method lacking sufficient deliberation."

In a joint statement released on this day, they pointed out, "While we agree with the separation of investigation and indictment in principle, it must not mean a complete severance between investigation and indictment."

A total of 62 criminal law scholars, including current and former law school professors such as Ko Myung-soo of Seoul National University School of Law and Kang Dong-bum, professor emeritus at Ewha Womans University School of Law, as well as a research fellow at the Korean Women's Development Institute, put their names on the statement.

They urged, "Prosecutors' supplementary investigation rights must be maintained as a means to control and supplement police investigations. As methods to control police investigations, prosecutors' investigative command, supplementary investigation, and the transfer of all cases should be reexamined."

In addition, they argued that concerns that maintaining supplementary investigation rights could lead to past abuses of prosecutorial power cannot serve as a justification for abolishing supplementary investigation rights.

They further pointed out, "Limited supplementary investigation into cases initiated by the police is different from the past exercise of limitless investigative power by prosecutors. The abuse of supplementary investigation rights can be institutionally controlled, and the side effects of complete abolition could be greater."

They also emphasized the necessity of judicial control mechanisms over special judicial police officers.

They stated, "Prosecutors' investigative command over special judicial police officers must also be maintained. Since the investigative procedure is the first stage of the criminal procedure, the issues of prosecution reform and supplementary investigation rights must be decided according to the legal principles of the judicial procedure, not political interests."

They added, "Opinions opposing the complete abolition of supplementary investigation rights should not be dismissed as political factional logic. We express serious concern over the reform method of pushing for the revision of the Criminal Procedure Act, which affects all citizens, in a blitz without sufficient deliberation."

(Photo: Yonhap News)