South Korean police reform committee urges increased lawyer recruitment

The Police Investigation Reform Committee has recommended that the Korean National Police Agency significantly expand its recruitment of lawyers to strengthen legal expertise. The committee suggested hiring more than 100 lawyers annually for the next five years to ensure that each police station has approximately three to four legal professionals on staff. This recommendation follows concerns regarding the police's ability to handle investigations independently following changes to the criminal procedure law.

Data reveals a critical shortage of experienced personnel within the force. Currently, lawyers make up less than 1% of the police force, totaling only 311 individuals. Furthermore, statistics show that over 50% of investigators handling economic, anti-corruption, and crimes against women and youth have less than five years of investigative experience. In some sectors, such as economic crimes, 53% of investigators have under five years of experience, while 17% have less than one year.

Experts warn that the combination of a lack of legal specialists and a high concentration of junior investigators could lead to inadequate investigations, especially as the police take on greater responsibilities previously held by prosecutors. The committee emphasized that improving treatment and promotion opportunities for legal professionals is also necessary to prevent them from leaving for other agencies.