Recently students suicided himself as violence in schools. So we are questioning effect of various countermeasures against violence in schools and needing another countermeasures against violence in schools are suggested. Police diversion for school violence should be legislated. Diversion program would avoid the stigma and deviance-enhancing effect of official labeling and thereby reduce recidivism. Police handles school violent case for the first time. So police should have diversion program.
Object of legislation of police diversion should be student offender. Because meaning of school violence is obvious. This term is in Act on the prevention of and countermeasures against violence in schools. But it is not related to criminal law. Purpose of this Act is to protect the human right of students and raise students as healthy members of society through the protection of victim students, the guidance and education of aggressor students, and mediation between victim students and aggressor students, by providing for matters necessary for the prevention of and countermeasures against violence in schools. Police diversion is authority related to criminal procedure.
Police diversion for student offender should be legislated in Act on the performance of duties by police officers. That needs in korean diversion program system. In legislating of police diversion for student offender, the following provision about juveniles of Juvenile Act Article 4 should be abolished.
Juveniles who are 10 years of age or more, fall under any of the following items and in view of their character or environment, may be prone to commit acts in violation of Acts and subordinate statutes relating to criminal punishment. 1) Juveniles who have inclinations to cause uneasy feeling for people around them by roaming in groups. 2)Juveniles who stay away from home without any justifiable reason. 3)Juveniles who have inclinations to drink alcohol, raise a disturbance or be exposed to harmful environment influences.
According to Act on the prevention of and countermeasures against violence in schools, each school shall establish an autonomous committee for countermeasures against school violence(hereinafter referred to as “autonomous committee”) for the purpose of deliberating on matters related to the prevention of and countermeasures against school violence. Autonomous committee should involve police diversion program for student offender. And student offender should have chance to compromise with a victim such as compensation for loss or so.