People Power Party lawmaker Park Hyung-soo (right) [Yonhap]
People Power Party lawmaker Park Hyung-soo (right) [Yonhap]

People Power Party lawmaker Park Hyung-soo said Monday that a proposed revision to the Criminal Procedure Act — centered on abolishing prosecutors' supplementary investigation powers — amounts to "a law to nullify President Lee Jae Myung's trial, or to erase his trial."

Park, who serves as the PPP's floor whip on the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, made the remarks during an appearance on MBC Radio. He said the bill "is a provision that benefits the president — so should the president promulgate a law that works in his own favor?"

Park said the chances of a presidential veto appeared relatively low given current trends, but added that President Lee "has told the public on multiple occasions that abolishing the supplementary investigation powers could cause problems."

He then said that "in cases like the Jang Yun-gi case, where police engage in organized cover-ups, demanding supplementary investigations is pointless," adding that "anyone who has conducted an investigation knows this."

On the Democratic Party's proposed full-case transfer system covering seven categories of crimes as a follow-up measure, Park said police themselves would determine whether a given offense falls within those seven categories. "There is also the question of what happens to victims of crimes outside those seven categories," he said.

Regarding the establishment of a public prosecution office, Park said the key questions were how it would be organized and staffed. He said prosecutors have long served as quasi-judicial officers, but that under the proposed Central Investigation Agency arrangement, they would be recognized only as investigators — on par with police officers or ordinary investigators. He added that the prosecution office would still require substantial support work to maintain indictments, and that the Justice Ministry minister appeared to be wrestling seriously with how to staff the Central Investigation Agency, which under current trends would likely have to draw from police officers or private-sector lawyers.


mp1256@heraldcorp.com