Lee Sun-kyun's 'penalty war' in response to 'informant investigation tyranny' imitating the U.S. drug war
The Korean-style drug investigation, which involves harsher punishments and a greater proportion of large fines, has spread to the Korean-style large fines debate, in which the investigation takes the lead in imitating the “war on drugs,” which was the hard-line conservative strategy of the Reagan administration in the U.S., where foreign media failed.
Recent accusations against famous Korean celebrities highlight the continuation of Korea's strict anti-drug policies and attitudes that take a hardline stance on anything other than a complete ban on drug use, and have moved on to the issue of destruction of advertisements through investigations and penalties involving companies. went.
Due to the drug policy led by the investigative agency, the Commissioner of the Incheon Police Agency packaged the investigator's one-sidedness in the drug investigation as 'objective evidence' by saying 'specific informant's statements and evidence', and fined tens of billions of won in penalties in the media disclosure of the facts of the case and public summons. The suspect who was cornered committed suicide.
The Drug War led by President Bush under Reagan's hard-line conservative regime in the United States led to the LA riots in 1992 and the financial crisis caused by the budget deficit in 1998 due to the abuse of police power by allowing 'excessive investigation into traps.'
“South Korea’s recent drug crackdown and investigations by officials in President Yoon’s administration are reminiscent of the United States’ ‘war on drugs’ in the 1970s and 1980s,” said Ham Hye-wook, a professor at Boston University’s Graduate School of Social Welfare. "Cracking down with long prison sentences will not be effective in reducing drug use and overdose deaths, and we know that from American history," he told the New York Times on the 28th.
In the article <'Parasite' star's death highlights Korea's drug crackdown>, the NYT said, "'Parasite' actor Lee Sun-kyun is not the only celebrity involved in Korea's recent drug crackdown," and actor Yoo Ah-in is also facing trial, and "several retailers “After the drug allegations were made public, we cut ties with the actor and Yoo Ah-in is no longer listed as a cast member for the second season of Netflix’s ‘Hellbound.’”
G-Dragon, a rapper and former member of K-pop boy group Big Bang, had been under investigation for possible drug use until police dropped the case earlier this month after he tested negative on several drug tests.
Nevertheless, BMW Korea removed his image from its online advertisements.
“If you look at the data and look at the harsh penalties that have been in place for decades, it hasn’t worked,” said Gloria Lai, director of the International Drug Policy Consortium, which promotes evidence-based drug policies around the world. “The cost of life is enormous,” he told the NYT.
NYT said, “After the death of actor Lee, the police in Incheon, who interrogated him on charges of marijuana and ketamine use, were criticized during the investigation for being disproportionate to the seriousness of the charges against him,” and “Mr. Lee’s lawyer Park Seong-cheol said, “Mr. He denied it and accused the police of violating the regulations on disclosure of information, and his lawyer raised objections to the fairness of the investigation, saying that Mr. Lee had received negative drug tests on several occasions.
Attorney Park said, “The police intensively investigated allegations that Mr. Lee used drugs, but did not take his claims that he was the target of threats seriously enough,” adding, “Despite the fact that there was no evidence that he had used drugs, the police did not take them seriously enough.” "It was insulting and humiliating to him. It is true that a drug investigation is necessary, but it is problematic that the drug investigation goes too far and does not follow procedures and protocols," he told the NYT.
Incheon Police Chief Kim Hee-jung defended the investigation at a press conference that day. The NYT reported that he said, "I performed my duties legally based on the specific informant's statements and evidence."
In the United States, when a person under investigation dies by suicide or other deaths during the investigation, a supervisory investigation into the investigation process and the investigator is a mandatory procedure. However, in the case of the death of an actor in Korea, the police chief in charge of the investigation said, "The investigation was conducted legally," without mentioning the procedure. 'The investigative party publicly briefed the media on the legality of its investigation, and the media accepted this as is.
It appears that the Korean police will have to reinvestigate the ‘fairness of the investigation’ regarding the ‘statement of a threatening incident’ by an impartial organization.
Regarding Korea's drug crackdown, NYT said, "President Yoon Seok-yeol and politically conservative government officials declared a 'war on drugs' after taking office in 2022 and warned that access to drugs is increasing nationwide," and "Celebrities are using social media to He led the ‘Just Say No’ campaign and some talk shows devoted entire episodes to anti-drug programs,” the wartime administration said.
As such, Yoon Jeongbo's drug investigation is led by the priority of punishment, so the investigation is entirely the work of the investigative agency and abuse of investigative power is thoroughly guaranteed from the beginning.
But public policy experts say a punitive approach to drug use alone is insufficient to curb drug use, addiction and overdose deaths, the NYT said.
Dr. Jimi Huh, a professor of public health at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, where Koreatown is located, said, “Punitive policies alone may not be enough,” adding, “We need to change the culture and good infrastructure for addiction treatment in parallel with education.” “I do,” he told NYT.
Dr. Hyunjun Yoon, a drug policy expert at Sogang University, said, “Koreans may be prosecuted for using drugs abroad after returning to their home country. “If you are convicted of illegal drug use, you may be required to complete a mandatory education program run by the Department of Justice or be imprisoned,” he said. “It doesn’t provide a sustainable plan for the future,” he told the NYT.
“We have been calling on the government to open more rehabilitation clinics for drug users, but there are still far fewer clinics for alcoholics than there are currently,” he said.
Regarding Korea's drug policy, the NYT reported that experts said, "Korea's drug policy, combined with its geographic isolation, has helped keep drug use low for some time, but reports of trafficking and drug use have surged over the past few years." “It is difficult to obtain accurate data on drugs in Korea due to stigma and fear of incarceration,” he said under the ‘policy of relying on investigation without data.’
Reuters reported, “The head of the local police who investigated South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun on suspicion of using illegal drugs defended the rigorous questioning of him before he was found dead.” Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency Commissioner Kim Hee-jung said at a press conference, “The entire process was fair and Mr. Lee consented.” “It was done under the following conditions,” it was reported on the 29th.
Reuters continued, “The death of Lee, who played a wealthy family man in the Oscar-winning film ‘Parasite,’ sparked sympathy from both the film industry and the public, and was a testament to the harsh and public nature of the investigation that fueled media reports delving into his private life. “It raised questions,” he said.
He told Reuters he needed a lawyer to hear his statements during three of his appearances, including one that lasted all night in his last appearance, and that police said they took place in the presence of a lawyer.
Commissioner Kim told reporters, “The investigation into the deceased was conducted in accordance with legally prescribed procedures based on specific reports, testimonies, and evidence,” and that it was in “compliance with our own internal regulations.”
Reuters said, “Korean media reported that before his death, Mr. Lee denied knowingly taking illegal drugs and said that he took drugs after being deceived by a bar owner who tried to blackmail him.”
Reuters said, “Incheon police previously questioned K-pop star G-Dragon on charges of using illegal drugs, but did not indict him and instead dismissed the charges,” adding, “This investigation was carried out as part of a crackdown by the conservative government of President Yoon Seok-yeol, and President Yoon “It was called the ‘war on drugs,’” the report said.
Some of the contents of his will were revealed, including "I'm sorry that the penalty is so large," "I can't help it," and "I think this is the only way."
The penalty for a celebrity is 2-3 times the down payment, and Korean media estimated his penalty at around 10 billion won.
Former Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon, who led the drug war, officially announced his ‘guilty judgment’ bias in the prosecutor’s investigation, telling reporters at the event where President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol explained the reason for his nomination as “the right person for the global standard,” saying, “The prosecution just needs to catch the bad guys.”
The 'global standard' that President Yoon spoke of is that guilt or innocence is decided by a jury in court, and the U.S. criminal policy guarantees arresting investigators and interrogating investigators to appear as jury witnesses and be interrogated by lawyers, preventing excessive investigation and entrapment. The drug investigation is controlled as innocence is guaranteed.
Merrick Garland, the first Attorney General of the Biden administration, said at his confirmation hearing in February 2021 that his job as attorney general was “the people’s lawyer,” and that as “not the president’s lawyer, but the lawyer of the United States,” he “does everything to prevent partisan or political investigations by anyone.” “I will do everything within my power,” he said, adding, “I want to show that the Ministry of Justice has returned to its original place of law enforcement and criminal policy without partisanship, rather than being a center for partisan conflict of opinion.”
The 1992 LA riots, which were sparked by an acquittal in the beating of a black man due to police regulations, resulted in two police officers being found guilty when the Clinton administration applied 'police regulations in violation of the Constitution', and became the driving force behind the administrative monopoly of the Republican Party's hard-line conservative system in the 1980s. Unconstitutional provisions were found and abolished in the Eden ordinance and internal regulations.
<Han Dong-hoon ‘Separation of investigation and prosecution causes harm to the public’ Prejudice in ignoring excessive investigation, see May 8, 2022>