Ahead of Jo Doo-sun's Release, 'Chemical Castration' Reexamined... Will It Be Applied?

Chemical Castration of Sex Offenders (PG) [Produced by Choi Ja-yoon] Illustration
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Nah Han-ah] With Jo Doo-soon's release scheduled for December 13, the enactment of the Jo Doo-soon Protective Custody Act has been urged, but due to the court's ruling against it, implementation is practically impossible. As an alternative, interest in 'chemical castration' is rising.

'Chemical castration' is a system that uses medication to suppress sexual urges, targeting patients with paraphilia aged 19 and older, combining drug administration and psychotherapy to weaken sexual function for a certain period.

Chemical castration can be ordered by the court after a prosecutor's request and diagnosis and evaluation by a psychiatric specialist, or it can be imposed within the probation period by the Ministry of Justice's Treatment and Custody Review Committee.

If a paraphilic patient serving a sentence for a sex crime meets parole conditions, the prosecutor may request a treatment order. In this case, the consent of the inmate is required.

Since the chemical castration system was implemented in 2011, it has been applied to a total of 49 individuals. There have been no reported cases of recidivism related to this, and it is known to be highly effective.

Photo by Yonhap News TV

In this regard, there have been claims that chemical castration should be applied to Jo Doo-soon, but in reality, it is difficult to apply. This is because retroactive application of the system is difficult, making it legally impossible to enforce.

Jo Doo-soon was sentenced to 12 years in prison for rape and injury in September 2009, while the 'Act on the Chemical Treatment of Sexual Offenders' was enacted in July 2011.

Furthermore, Jo Doo-soon has not received a separate treatment custody order, so disposition through the Treatment and Custody Review Committee is also impossible.

Instead, after release, Jo Doo-soon must wear an electronic tracking device for seven years. The Ministry of Justice plans to assign a dedicated probation officer for one-on-one management, and Ansan City will hire a martial arts officer to work on preventing recidivism.

Meanwhile, in interviews with psychological counselors at the Ansan Probation Office, Jo Doo-soon stated his intention to return to Ansan after release. Subsequently, Ansan City held a 'Jo Doo-soon Recidivism Prevention Measures' meeting, and Mayor Yoon Hwa-seop of Ansan sent a letter urging the Minister of Justice, Choo Mi-ae, to enact the Protective Custody Act and has been making every effort to prevent recidivism, including submitting petitions.