Despite Witnessing CIO’s Flaws... No Blueprint for Overhauling the Criminal Justice System with the Central Investigation Service

With only 95 days remaining before the abolition of the Prosecutors’ Office and the launch of the Public Prosecution Service and the Central Investigation Service, both human and material infrastructure, as well as related legal frameworks, remain incomplete. Nevertheless, the government and the Democratic Party of Korea have decided to push ahead with the launch on October 2. Given that the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO), which followed the existing criminal justice procedures, suffered delays and operational issues from the outset, there are concerns that the Public Prosecution Service and the Central Investigation Service—which require a complete overhaul of the criminal justice system—will be forced to “set off with the doors open,” meaning they will launch before proper preparation is complete.

Even the Long-Prepared CIO Faced Delays in Launch

The CIO Act passed the National Assembly’s plenary session in December 2019 and was officially announced via the State Council in January 2020. A preparatory task force under the Prime Minister was established to handle administrative procedures. While the law set July 15, 2020, as the statutory launch date, the actual launch did not occur until January 2021.

This happened even though the CIO was simply an additional institution that maintained existing criminal justice procedures. Administrative and legislative obstacles—such as conflict between ruling and opposition parties and difficulties appointing the CIO chief—were to blame.

The CIO, already delayed due to difficulties during the initial setup stage, continued to face criticism for lack of investigative capacity and professionalism even after its launch.

By contrast, there are concerns that the preparation period for the Public Prosecution Service and the Central Investigation Service is far too short, despite the fact that this represents a massive restructuring of the entire criminal justice system. Many in legal circles point out that this is because “prosecution reform” is being used as a tool in the race for party leadership ahead of the Democratic Party’s national convention. In particular, questions have been raised about the direction and substance of prosecution reform after Prime Minister Kim Minseok publicly announced the abolition of supplementary investigation rights and a refusal to prepare a separate government proposal, without prior coordination with the Prosecution Reform Task Force.

As Many as 650 Laws Need to Be Amended

For the Public Prosecution Service and the Central Investigation Service to function properly, amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act will need to come first. It is necessary to reestablish the system for closing cases and to clarify procedures for cooperation between prosecutors and investigative agencies, as well as the process after abolishing supplementary investigation rights.

The scope of legal revisions required is enormous. There are currently around 650 laws and presidential decrees that include the terms “prosecutors” or “prosecutor’s office.” If such a vast array of laws spanning the criminal justice system is amended in a short period without sufficient deliberation, there are concerns about conflicts between laws and systemic inconsistency. If the legal system is not fully revised within the remaining time, both the procedures for handling cases and the division of authority between agencies could remain unclear, which may cause confusion on the ground, delays in case processing, and even gaps in investigations.

The status of material and human infrastructure at the field level is also inadequate. Although the establishment of Central Investigation Service branches nationwide is necessary, no office buildings have been secured in regions outside Seoul. Even if private buildings are leased immediately for the October launch, experts say that physically equipping them with essential security facilities and specialized IT networks required for national investigative agencies is impossible within the remaining period. The staffing process is also facing difficulties, as the organizational structure, staffing levels by rank, and specific rank systems for each agency have yet to be finalized.

Reporter Woo Bin, The Law Times

※This article is based on content supplied by Law Times.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.