The National Human Rights Commission disclosed that it was the customary practice of the Gyeongju Police Department to handcuff detainees during visitations without reasonable cause, which violates personal rights and physical freedom. In May 2002, Lee, 43, filed a petition against Hwang, head of the police department, and four others, claiming, “the excessive use of handcuffs violated my personal rights.”
The National Human Rights Commission advised the Gyeongju Police Department Chief to follow the guidelines outlined in the Detention of Suspect & Transfer Instructions and minimize the use of handcuffs when a detainee receives visits. In addition, they suggested the Gyeongbuk Provincial Police Agency conduct human rights training for all the Gyeongju Police Department detention officials as well as the defendants.
Lee, local teacher, was arrested of drunk driving and taken into custody at Gyeongju Police Department in May 2002. Officer Park forced Lee to wear handcuffs when receiving visits by his student’s parents, and Lee filed a petition to the NHRC claiming violation of human rights.
The defendants claimed that the detainee showed psychologically unstable behavior, such as looking inside his cell and outside his window, and justified their actions citing Article 22 of the Detention of Suspect & Transfer Instructions, “when there is concern about the possibility of escape, violence or suicide, handcuffs or ropes can be used.”
However, given the structure and illumination of the cell and the hours that the defendant could have watched the detainee, the NHRC found lack of credibility for the defendants’ claims of concern of escape, violence or suicide of the detainee. Moreover, even in the face of concerns, the defendants could have guarded or protected him in close proximity. Therefore, the Commission concluded that the defendant’s use of handcuffs on the detainee did not concur with the current laws and situation at the time, or take into consideration the job status of the detainee.
After receiving the petition, the Commission conducted a phone investigation between 11-17 June 2002 on other people detained at Gyeongju Police Station during the same period as Lee, and 7 out of 8 stated “we were handcuffed every time we had visits,” and the remaining person did not have any visitors. The 7 detainees questioned by the NHRC had been arrested for similar crimes, and there was no real threat of self-inflicted violence, which leads to the conclusion that the use handcuffs on detainees was most likely a customary practice.
Non-convicted detainees who appear with handcuffs in front of family or friends can only feel shame or embarrassment. Since the use of handcuffs psychologically affects detainees, making them feel oppressed and powerless, the use of handcuffs is discouraged. However, The Gyeongju Police Department made it a custom to use handcuffs on detainees when receiving visits, and the Commission felt that this practice violated the Act on the Performance of Duties by Police Officers, the Detention of Suspect & Transfer Instructions, and the Article 10(human dignity) and Article 12(human freedom) of the Constitution of Korea.
