In February 2023, the boys in the Silje case were declared innocent of the murder of Silje by the public prosecutor, later confirmed by the Attorney General. But the joy over the decision had a bad aftertaste for the man who was six years old when Silje died. – Although it has been established that we are to be considered innocent, a veil of uncertainty hangs over us, he said after the Attorney General’s decision. A year later another downturn came. The Civil Rights Administration then rejected their claim for restitution. Reason: The three boys aged 4, 5 and 6 did not have the status of accused at the time in 1994. The 6-year-old’s lawyer, Sigurd Klomsæt, believes that the Civil Rights Administration hid behind “pure formalities” when they rejected the 6-year-old’s and the 5-year-old’s claims. The problem was that they were minors. Today he submitted a notice of legal action against the State. Lawyer Sigurd Klomsæt. Photo: OLE JØRGEN KOLSTADBRÅTEN / news – Incomprehensible Here he points to the following circumstances which indicate that the boys in the Silje case in reality had status as accused: The boys were named by the police as perpetrators of the murder of Silje during a press conference in October 1994. When the police believes there is a preponderance of probability that a suspect is guilty, the person concerned’s status is changed to the charge. According to the European Commission of Human Rights’ definition, the boys were in reality to be regarded as the accused by the police who launched an investigation against them. – To claim that this is not a charge is incomprehensible, writes Klomsæt. The 6-year-old believes that the presumption of innocence – that one is innocent until proven guilty – was violated on all fronts in the Silje case. – Even though we were children, the presumption of innocence applied, he says. As the three boys were under the criminal minimum age, the case was never tried in court in 1994. This, the 6-year-old believes, led to fundamental legal principles being violated. – Fight for children’s rights – The police’s wretched investigation meant that we were instead wrongly named as guilty by the police chief at a press conference. The only way society can make amends now is a reparation, says the 6-year-old. He will not disclose the size of the claim yet. But he says there will be talk of millions. According to the 6-year-old, this is not just a fight for justice for himself and the two other boys who were named as guilty in Silje’s death. – This is also a fight for children’s rights, says the now 36-year-old man. If the rejection of the claim for compensation is not overturned, Klomsæt warns that he will take legal action against the State on behalf of the 6-year-old. Murder in the toboggan run Illustration: Marius Lubbe / news On 15 October 1994, five-year-old Silje Marie Redergård was found partially undressed, abused and dead in the wet fresh snow on a toboggan run in the Drabant town of Tiller. The following day, the police chief in Trondhjem said that Silje was mistreated and left to die by three playmates aged four, five and six. Earlier in the day, they should have told in questioning how they themselves or their friends had used serious violence against Silje. In the documentary series “Murder in the sledge”, news Brennpunkt has gone through the police documents together with a number of experts. The experts conclude that there is no technical evidence that the boys were behind the crimes against Silje, and that they were subjected to illegal interrogations and pressure. After considering the case and what emerges in the documentary series, the public prosecutor in Trøndelag, Bjørn Kristian Soknes, asked the police to start a new investigation. In February, the state attorney concluded that the boys are innocent in the case. Published 18.09.2024, at 15.15
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Announces multi-million lawsuit against the State – news Dokumentar
