– The police believe that the video from Kongsberg is not descriptive of how we generally solve our social mission. We see that there are more people who have doubts about it, says police director Benedicte Bjørnland. A police officer has been charged with violence against two men after striking with a clenched fist and baton in Kongsberg late last autumn. According to the police, several have expressed that the video from Kongsberg is not a one-off incident. – We want to remove that uncertainty, and this must be done through knowledge and research, according to the police director. Beaten with a baton and fists It was the night of Sunday 30 October that Kristian Pablo Teigen (26) and Kevin Simensen (26) were subjected to several blows with a baton and the fists of a police officer. The case started when the group of friends were on the town in Kongsberg. They were thrown out by a bouncer at the nightclub, who believed Simensen had threatened him. On the way home, they met a police patrol at Esso. Here, surveillance cameras show how Simensen was laid on the ground and received several punches to the face. Kevin Simensen’s face was visibly damaged after the incident on 30 October last year. Photo: Private Police deleted a video The friend Kristian Teigen (26) was hit with a baton when he heard Simensen shouting that he couldn’t breathe, and tried to intervene. A third friend, Marius Stormo (28), was sprayed with pepper spray by a police officer who he says took his phone and deleted the video he took while Simensen was lying on the ground. The officer was charged and has passed a fine of NOK 12,000 for deleting the video. news has previously spoken to the three men who all say that they have lost trust in the police. The policeman who has been charged with violence has subsequently been hanged on social media after the incident. The man’s lawyer, John Christian Elden, says the time after the incident has been tough for the police officer. – It is tough for him to be hung out like this. The case is presented one-sidedly, and there is always more to the story than what is shown in a video, says the lawyer to news. Here, Kevin Simensen (26) is beaten with a clenched fist by a police officer. Photo: Surveillance video – A significant responsibility Bjørnland will counter with research that, according to the police, several people believe the incident at Kongsberg was not a one-off incident. The research will look at disproportionate use of force in the police, but also police practice related to, for example, the duty to report and the duty to intervene to stop a colleague from disproportionate use of force. – The police are society’s civil power apparatus. With that comes a significant responsibility. A fundamental principle for our service performance is that all exercise of power must be necessary, proportionate and justifiable, says Bjørnland. Police director Benedicte Bjørnland wants to correct the impression of the police after the incident at Kongsberg. Photo: Geir Olsen / NTB Limited knowledge Bjørnland says that today there is limited knowledge about how the police solve missions and their use of force. Therefore, according to Bjørnland, the discussion following such incidents is often based more on experience from individual cases than on a research-based knowledge base. It is not yet clear when and how the research will be carried out.
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The police must investigate their own use of force – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
