Court upholds police punishment on officer for ordering subordinates to run personal errands

A South Korean court sided with the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s decision to punish a police officer for repeatedly ordering subordinates to run personal errands and denying them vacation leave.

Judges in the Seoul Administrative Court on Monday dismissed a lawsuit filed by the officer, who sought to overturn a disciplinary action imposed by the police agency in December 2022. The police agency handed down a punishment of a two-month pay reduction, after the officer was found to have violated the Civil Servants Act, which mandates integrity and professional conduct.

An investigation revealed that the officer gave orders to subordinates to run various personal errands on at least nine occasions. They include buying lottery tickets from a specific convenience store known for having many first-prize winners, even when the subordinate told him that queueing would take over 30 minutes. The officer also ordered a junior employee to pick up his dry cleaning and buy cigarettes for him.

In another instance the officer was found to have denied a vacation leave request by a subordinate, because the request wasn’t made in person in advance. The officer is also accused of making threatening remarks to a colleague when complaints against him were reported to senior management.

The officer argued that the errands were done voluntarily and that he did not restricted vacation time.

But the court ruled that his actions constituted an abuse of power and that the officer’s orders were outside the scope of his duties and unrelated to his official responsibilities. The court also said the disciplinary action was justified, describing the officer's actions as "workplace harassment" that could cause psychological distress.