The research project of 「Comprehensive Policy for Developing Scientific Criminal Investigation and Forensic Science」(2018~2023) led by Korean Institute of Criminology & Justice aims to build a national policy framework for scientific criminal investigation and forensic science for the criminal justice reform in this era of the 4th Industrial Revolution.

  The Research consists of the studies on the institutions and practices of digital forensic, bio forensic and forensic psychology, in the context of national scientific criminal investigation law and policy. For the comprehensive study, this research project is based on the cooperative system joined by Korean Association of Digital Forensic, Korean Association of Forensic Psychology, Korean Association of Criminal Procedure Law, Association of criminal case law studies, and Korean National Police Academy. A national comprehensive policy on scientific criminal investigation may contribute to building public confidence on criminal justice system by developing investigative techniques and forensic science by means of high technology.

  The project is to be proceed under the four main policy values of scientific investigation and forensic, such as : Protection of human rights, Promotion of effectiveness in criminal investigation, Promotion of national security& human safety, Promotion of criminal justice reform. The project propose, as conclusion, that both value-oriented and strategic approach is needed for the government to develop law and policy on forensic science and scientific investigation.

  The value of ‘effectiveness’ means both that of criminal investigation and that of forensic science, which should be secured by professionalism, efficiency, and trustworthiness both in the results and process of the investigation. The need for the effectiveness of forensic science in criminal investigations demands collaborative research to establish an evidence-based model that affect forensic science's impact upon the investigation of crime and justice outcomes.

  The value of 'security' can be found in the fact that one of the main task of criminal investigation is to protect national security and human safety against any gross violations of security, including crimes against national security and social disaster. Technique developed by forensic science can be used to investigate the cause and effect of large-scale social disasters and to prevent any threats against national security. Security as a policy value can be realized by research and development, supporting institutions, and communication with experts and citizens.

  So does for the development of scientific criminal investigation and forensics. Model cases of scientific investigation and forensic in the cases of national security and human safety should be examined to back up the development of criminal investigation, and such development should be supported by legal institutions and policies. This will lead to more advanced national scientific criminal investigation and forensic policy in the coming era of digital transformation and the 4th Industrial Revolution.

  The value of 'reform', esp. criminal justice reform can be found in the fact that one of the main task of criminal justice reform is to protect human rights, to protect national security and to promote the effectiveness of crime investigation. Law and policies on scientific criminal investigation and forensic is to be contribute to the values of the reform, and such recent reform legislation and institutional reform (the change of criminal investigation system & structure) has some impact on the institutions of scientific crime investigation at the Police and Prosecutors’ Service. 

  What is more significant background to the reform will be the pandemic of the COVID19, which have had great impact on the whole Korean society as well as the global society. The era of post-COVID19 can be defined as its characteristics of the distancing, remoteness, and digitalization, which again should be considered as the key elements of the criminal justice reform.

  Scientific investigation governance at the national level is required to comprehensively manage related legislation and policies, institutions & organizations, and related professional researchers & practitioners for the national policy goal of forensic science is to be systematically and effectively resulted in the development of scientific investigation. There will be problems with the absence of a national scientific investigation governance : If the budget and R&D related to scientific investigation overlap and the systematic response to criticism against the results of the scientific investigation is insufficient, the reliability and appraisal results of the national forensic science agency may be in question.

  There also will be problems with the absence of a national scientific investigation governance : As the demand for forensic science increases, private forensic institutions may emerge to compete with national institutions or raise questions about the reliability and appraisal results of national scientific investigation institutions. It is necessary to proceed with long-term R&D projects for the systematic and continuous growth of forensic science, systematic management of research results, and develop a program for training professional scientific investigators.

  This is a matter to plan and promote the framework of the national forensic science and scientific investigation policy, and national supervision or coordination management system in the field of forensic science. At the national policy level, it is also necessary to comprehensively review the need for a national accredited organization dedicated to the standardization of forensics, training professionals, strengthening the professional capabilities of existing personnel, and setting forensics standards.

  Korean experts understands the importance of facilitating coordination and collaboration on forensic science across government institutions and academics, increasing the capacity of forensic service providers, and improving the reliability of forensic analysis. From a national policy perspective, it is necessary to institutionalize the listening channels for professional researchers and field opinions on scientific investigation activities, cooperation with forensic science-related organizations, and the issue of strengthening forensic science capabilities in investigative agencies after the change of the recent criminal investigation system.

  One of the major policy tasks are intensive investment in human resources and equipment in the fields of education and training related to scientific investigation, and research & development related to evidence analysis directly handled by the police, biometric information (DNA), digital forensics, and fingerprint verification. Investigative agencies are expected to acquire and analyze digital evidence using artificial intelligence technology and maximize efficiency, effectiveness and accuracy, but note that various issues may arise in the future, such as privacy infringement, appropriateness of sensitive personal information analysis, bias in data and assessment tools, and transparency of algorithms.