피의자 신상공개의 공익성 판단기준에 대한 비판과 개선 방안 연구

The disclosure of suspects’ identities by law enforcement does not guarantee the public’s right to know, prevent crime and reduce recidivism. Firstly, the current law provides no practical guidelines on preventing crimes. Secondly, even when the public's right to know is interpreted as narrowly as to reinforce people’s involvement in the political decision-making process, this should not be achieved by making suspects’ personal information the object of this right. Nevertheless, the government’s duty to promote the public’s right to know can be considered a matter of public interest. Therefore, the disclosure of a suspect’s personal information must be in line with the Official Information Disclosure Act. Also, based on a comparative review of the U.S. precedents, the necessity of ensuring the public's right to know must satisfy two conditions: it must concern public figures and matters related to legitimate public decision-making. Above suggestions essentially aim to deliver four benefits: To ensure the practical exercise of the defendants’ rights on defense; prevent the invasion of privacy of suspects who are not necessarily related to public’s right to know; protect the interests of citizens who do not wish to know the faces of suspects; and resolve the issue of investigative agencies’ arbitrary abuse of their authority to disclose suspects’personal information.