The case in summary • A 16-year-old has been in custody for four months, despite the fact that both the police and his lawyer believe that prison is not the right solution. • A lack of institutional places in child care has led to imprisonment becoming necessary, according to the police. • There has been an increase in the number of times children under the age of 18 have been detained in custody in the last two years. • Minister for Children and Families Kjersti Toppe (Sp) criticizes Bufdir for the capacity problems and believes that the government has given plenty of money, time and instructions for Bufdir to be able to handle the situation. • Bufdir replies that it is the government that manages the purse strings and thus sets guidelines for what can be achieved. • The Norwegian Bar Association’s human rights committee is now investigating whether the practice of detaining minors in custody violates the law. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. On Tuesday, the 16-year-old boy will be released from Bjørgvin prison in Bergen. He has been in custody there since 26 February this year. The teenager is charged with attempted murder of a peer, after a stabbing at Os. – He has pleaded guilty to parts of the charge, but not to attempted murder, says the defender, lawyer Bertil Christian Hast Rønnestad. Rønnestad has always been aware that his client needs help, and that prison is not the right solution. The police also agree with that. Nevertheless, the police went to the district court a total of nine times and asked for the boy to be imprisoned. – It would have been best if the child welfare services had an institutional place for him, but that is not the case today, said police attorney Eli Valheim to news already in May. Police prosecutor Eli Valheim was clear that the police would ask for further detention until an alternative offer came from the child welfare services. Photo: Synne Lykkebø Hafsaas / news The police claim there is a risk of repetition and believe the boy must have an offer. In the absence of an offer from child protection services, prison was therefore necessary, according to the police attorney. As a result, the 16-year-old was behind bars. Increase in imprisonment of children He is not alone in being held as a minor. Figures news has received from the Norwegian Correctional Service show an increase in the number of times children under the age of 18 have been detained in custody in the last two years: 2022: 27 cases. 2023: 54 cases. 2024 as of June 24: 35 cases. Defender Rønnestad says it has been burdensome for the 16-year-old to sit in custody for 120 days, before it became clear that he can be transferred to a high-risk institution in Eastern Norway today. – It is very unfortunate that not only in this case, but also in many other cases, there is a lack of suitable institutional places for young people who find themselves in a difficult and vulnerable situation, says Rønnestad. Here at the youth unit at Bjørgvin prison in Bergen, the 16-year-old has been in custody since 26 February. Photo: Marit Hommedal / NTB National space shortage – We are not really allowed to queue, and recognize that we face a challenge on several levels, said divisional director of Bufdir, Jan Kato Fremstad, to news in May. Bufdir pointed out that the State Administrator has found more and more breaches of the duty they have to provide assistance. From eight violations in 2020 to 59 violations in 2023. Fremstad talked about the national shortage of places in high-risk institutions, and explained this with: Increasing youth crime. Children’s protection becomes the safety net for children where there is a high threshold for imprisonment. Bufdir experiences more complex challenges for the children who are referred to child welfare institutions. The Støre government proposed that the private market should be used less, and it takes time and resources to build up the same preparedness in the public sector. – We are positive that the public sector will take more responsibility, but a demanding situation arises when the private sector is phased out without having built up the state apparatus, said Fremstad. Division director in Bufdir, Jan Kato Fremstad, acknowledges that Bufdir has extensive capacity problems. Photo: Remi Sagen / news Minister for Children chastises own agency There are explanations that Minister for Children and Families Kjersti Toppe (Sp) does not accept. – Bufdir’s statements are misleading, writes Toppe on his own initiative in an e-mail to news. The minister believes that the government has given plenty of money, time and instructions for Bufdir to be able to handle the transition from private to public. However, the Minister will not answer news’s follow-up questions. – It is Bufdir that is responsible for the correct dimensioning and soundness of the offer. In the last two years, the government has prioritized a large increase in funds for Bufdir’s operations, because the need has increased. There was also NOK 150 million in the revised national budget, Toppe writes and adds: – The government has a long-term goal of increasing public preparedness for the children with the greatest needs in Norwegian child protection. We have given NOK 60 million to the restructuring itself in 2024. Minister for Children and Families Kjersti Toppe (Sp) is taking a hard line against her own agency. Photo: Amanda Iversen Orlich / news The Minister for Children goes to great lengths to blame Bufdir for the capacity problems. – I and the government have always been clear that the capacity in the public sector must be increased first and that changes must be justifiable, so that there is no risk that children will not receive services. It has been communicated to Bufdir. Bufdir responds Division Director Jan Kato Fremstad in Bufdir, will not comment on how it feels to receive public criticism from one’s own minister, but maintains that they have good communication. Regarding the criticism itself, Fremstad says that Bufdir goes to great lengths to find alternatives for the children who are waiting for a place in an institution. Fremstad points out that it is the government that sits on the money bag and sets guidelines for what is achievable: – Bufdir relates at all times to the budget frameworks and guidelines that come from the ministry. Within our budget framework, we work purposefully with the conversion of existing places to increase the capacity of the children who have the greatest need for help within the state apparatus. Investigating whether the state is breaking the law The Danish Bar Association’s human rights committee is reacting strongly to the increase in detention of minors. They will now investigate whether the practice violates central legislation such as the Constitution, the Criminal Code, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the European Convention on Human Rights. Lawyer Morten Engesbakk leads the investigations, which are in the very beginning phase. He is already aware that lack of resources is not a valid argument from the authorities, and warns of criticism. – Norway is bound by legislation which states that children must only be detained when absolutely necessary. The fact that you don’t have the resources should not make it absolutely necessary, says Engesbakk and adds emphatically: – Norway has the resources to establish the right provision for these children. Hi! Do you have any tips for this, or other matters? Please send me an e-mail: [email protected] Published 25.06.2024, at 17.28
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Accused 16-year-old after stabbing in Os was remanded in custody in Bergen for four months – news Vestland
