Police Enhance Objectivity in Risk Assessment... Improved Checklist Implemented Nationwide

71% of Investigators Positively Evaluate the System
Police: "We Will Create a Society Safe from Retaliatory Crimes"

The National Police Agency announced on the 21st that it will expand the implementation of the improved risk assessment checklist for crime victims nationwide starting from the 22nd.

The existing checklist was criticized for lacking sufficient risk assessment items related to relational crimes such as stalking and for being determined based on the subjective judgment of investigators, resulting in a lack of objectivity.

In response, the police added 10 risk assessment items related to relational crimes and developed an improved checklist that automatically assigns a risk level based on the responses to each item.

The new checklist was pilot tested from March 21 to April 30 in Seoul, Daejeon, and Gangwon, with 71% of the investigators involved giving positive evaluations. Additionally, the simplified risk determination method reduced the completion time from 11.2 minutes to 8.3 minutes.

The police use the risk assessment checklist to determine the risk level when there is a concern that crime victims may face retaliation from perpetrators, and then implement tailored safety measures such as personal protection. In cases where the risk level is very high or high, strong measures such as arrest and detention of the perpetrator, and application for detention in a holding cell, are taken along with customized safety measures like personal protection.

A National Police Agency official stated, "With the improved checklist, we will be able to assess the risk of retaliation against stalking and dating violence victims more accurately and objectively," adding, "We will make every effort to ensure that crime victims are safe from retaliatory crimes."