[Exclusive] High-Ranking Police Officers to Be Effectively Expelled for Serious Misconduct

Expansion of Post Restrictions from Superintendent General to Assistant Commissioner General
Sexual Misconduct, Drunk Driving, and Abuse of Power Also Classified as Serious Offenses
Heavy Disciplinary Action Leads to Permanent Bar from Investiga

From now on, all senior police officials at the rank of Senior Superintendent (Chonggyeong) or above who receive severe disciplinary action for serious misconduct will be permanently excluded from key positions such as command posts and roles related to investigation or audit. This disciplinary action will not only apply to breaches such as leaking investigative information, but also to sexual misconduct, drunk driving, and abuse of power. Officials at the rank of Senior Superintendent General (Gyeongmugwan) or above will be excluded from recommendations for key positions, effectively leading to their removal from the organization.

National Police Agency, Seoul Seodaemun-gu. Photo by Kang Jinhyung

According to the police on the 16th, the National Police Agency has decided to comprehensively expand and restructure its anti-corruption measures from the previous "one-strike-out for corruption" policy to a "permanent exclusion from key positions for serious misconduct." This policy applies to all police officials from those holding command authority over investigations at the rank of Senior Superintendent to Deputy Commissioners General. With the exception of the Commissioner General of the National Police Agency, who is appointed by the president, all senior police officials—including police station chiefs, heads of major metropolitan and provincial police agencies such as the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, and deputy chiefs at the main headquarters—are subject to these measures.

The National Police Agency has designated the following as serious misconduct: ▲ corruption related to investigative duties ▲ accepting money or entertainment ▲ sexual misconduct ▲ drunk driving ▲ abuse of authority. If an official receives severe disciplinary action for such misconduct, they will be permanently excluded from serving as commanders at police stations, investigation departments, or in audit, inspection, and human rights divisions. Corruption related to investigative duties encompasses a wide range of acts, from leaking investigation or enforcement information, performing duties due to illicit solicitations, to violating bans on inquiries into cases or private contact.

In particular, for officials ranked Senior Superintendent General or above, the agency plans to exclude them from recommendations for key positions as a rule. Since such high-ranking roles above police station chief are limited in number, excluding candidates at the recommendation stage effectively blocks any return to key posts or further promotions for these individuals.

With this system’s enhancement, the range of restricted positions has been expanded from police station chiefs to include heads of metropolitan and provincial agencies as well as national headquarters investigation divisions. Under the current one-strike-out system, officials at the Senior Superintendent General and Senior Superintendent ranks faced restrictions such as two assignments as staff in non-critical departments, while those below Superintendent were able to have restrictions lifted two years after disciplinary action. However, if found subject to permanent exclusion under the new system, exclusion will remain in effect indefinitely unless the decision is overturned through petition or litigation. For ranks below Superintendent, there are also plans to implement a system that will permanently ban them from working in investigation departments.

The National Police Agency discussed the new exclusion plans twice at its task force meeting last month, in response to the amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act, and identified the problem that previous position restrictions were only temporary. Since its introduction in January 2013, the one-strike-out anti-corruption system has gradually expanded its scope, but still only covered senior and deputy police station chiefs. Extending permanent restrictions to all major positions, including those at the Deputy Commissioner General rank—who are candidates to become the next Commissioner General—and investigation departments, significantly increases the severity of the disciplinary measures.

However, the new anti-corruption policy will not be applied retroactively. Individuals already being managed under the existing one-strike-out system will continue to be subject to restrictions until the requirements and procedures for lifting those restrictions under the previous policy are met.

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