La traducción al español está en camino; mientras tanto se muestra la versión en inglés.
Busan court rejects inmate's suit over police records, calls requests an abuse of right
En breve
The Busan District Court on October 1 dismissed in full a lawsuit by a prison inmate, identified only as A, who challenged Busanjin Police Station's refusal to release all its information-disclosure decisions from November 2025. The court ruled the request was an abuse of right, finding it was made to harass public officials rather than to use the information. According to the Korean National Police Agency, A has filed 61 similar requests with police offices nationwide over the past three years and six lawsuits over refusals.
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The Busan District Court's 1-3 Administrative Division on October 1 dismissed in full a lawsuit filed by a prison inmate, identified only as A, against Busanjin Police Station (부산진경찰서), according to the Korean National Police Agency. A had sought to overturn the police's refusal to disclose information. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
In February, A asked the station for the full texts of the decisions on all information-disclosure requests that members of the public had filed with it in November 2025. Police said 103 of the 108 disclosure decisions made in that period involved investigation material and that releasing the other five could infringe privacy. Newsis and Yonhap reported that the refusal was issued in March. A then sued, arguing the refusal was unlawful. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
The court ruled that the request was an abuse of right. It found that A sought the information solely to harass public officials, with no intention of actually using it. It also cited that the information had no bearing on A's legal status and could include sensitive private details of third parties, and that police would waste considerable administrative resources identifying and deleting personal information from the records. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
According to police, A has filed 61 similar disclosure requests with police offices across the country over the past three years and has brought six lawsuits challenging refusals. Police counted similar cases from some inmates at 6 in 2024, 14 in 2025 and 14 so far in 2026, 34 in all. Newsis and Asia Economy described these as repeated disclosure requests, while Yonhap said they were requests that went on to lawsuits. Police said they have won 23 related lawsuits and that 7 are pending; Newsis reported police as saying no loss has been finalised since February this year. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
The Korean National Police Agency said it would guarantee the public's right to know as far as possible while preventing unnecessary waste of administrative resources, so that police can focus on their core duty of protecting lives, safety and property. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Por qué importa
The ruling backs police in refusing disclosure requests that the court found were made to harass officials, at a time when police say similar repeated requests from some inmates are rising. The Korean National Police Agency said it would guarantee the public's right to know while avoiding unnecessary waste of administrative resources.
Datos clave
- The Busan District Court's 1-3 Administrative Division on October 1 dismissed in full the lawsuit by inmate A against the police's refusal to disclose information. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- In February, A asked Busanjin Police Station (부산진경찰서) for the full texts of the decisions on all information-disclosure requests filed with it in November 2025. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Of the 108 disclosure decisions made in that period, 103 involved investigation material and the rest could infringe privacy, police said in refusing the request. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The court found the request was an abuse of right, made solely to harass officials with no intention of using the information. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- A filed 61 similar disclosure requests with police offices nationwide over the past three years and six lawsuits against refusals, according to police. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Police counted similar inmate cases at 6 in 2024, 14 in 2025 and 14 in 2026. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Police said they have won 23 related lawsuits and 7 are still pending. [ 1 , 3 ]
Confirmado por varias fuentes
- The Busan District Court's 1-3 Administrative Division dismissed A's suit in full on October 1. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The court ruled the disclosure request was an abuse of right made to harass officials. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Police refused the request because 103 of the 108 decisions concerned investigations and the rest raised privacy concerns. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- A filed 61 similar requests and six lawsuits against police over three years. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Police have won 23 related lawsuits, with 7 pending. [ 1 , 3 ]
Aún sin aclarar
- What the yearly figures of 6, 14 and 14 cases (34 in total) count. Newsis and Asia Economy describe them as similar disclosure requests by inmates, while Yonhap says they are the similar requests that went on to lawsuits.
- Whether police have lost any such case. Only Newsis reports the police saying no loss has been finalised since February this year.
- Whether A will appeal the ruling. None of the reports say.