New law gives police more authority in emergency situations

Emergency workers partake in a training exercise for emergency situations caused by heavy snowfall, in Geumcheon-gu, Seoul, Wednesday. (Yonhap)

A new bill stipulating the authority bestowed upon police officers dispatched in emergency situations has recently been passed by the National Assembly, police officials said Wednesday.

According to the National Police Agency, the parliament passed the law on operation of the 112 emergency dispatch service last Friday, providing legal grounds for the police's actions in emergency situations including evacuation of citizens, imposing fines and forcing entry into buildings.

South Korea's 112 emergency call service for the police was introduced in 1957, but no legal clause related to its operation had existed in the South Korean law. Police instead relied on the regulation provided by the NPA, which does not provide legal grounds for specific actions of the officers' actions during emergency situations.

As of now, police officers are allowed to enter other people's property based on Article 7, Clause 1 of the Act on Performance of Duties by Police Officers, which states that a police officer can do so only in case of imminent danger from disaster or hazardous situations.

"Previously, police officers were hesitant toward emergency measures unless a dangerous situation occurred right in front of them.... With the new law, if (the officers) decide there is a risk of a situation, they would be allowed use measures including forcing entry into other buildings and limiting citizens' use of cars," a police official said.

The new law expands the definition of "emergency situations," while allowing more leeway for police officers to carry out actions in such cases. In case of "a very urgent threat of harm," police officers will be allowed a forced entry, and limited use of other people's properties, with the right to fine those who refuse.

Another key point of the new law is providing legal grounds for the officers to force evacuation in case of disaster situations, and allowing them to impose fines on those who refuse or obstruct such measures. The previous law only allows evacuations in limited case such as natural disasters and warfare.

Officials are hoping this will help prevent disasters like the deadly crowd crush in Itaewon last year, which resulted in 159 deaths. Under the new law, officers could theoretically perceive the crowd build-up as potentially dangerous and disperse the crowd before the situation becomes too dire.

A clause in the new bill will stipulate that false report to the 112 emergency service will be slapped a 5 million won ($3,800) fine, which currently varies depending on the degree of the crime.

The new bill will be enacted in June of next year.

By Yoon Min-sik(minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)