The case in summary A man in Finnmark was acquitted of a number of cases of violence and threats. It happened because police prosecutor Line Skjengen concluded that the evidence was not sufficient to convict him. She waived several points in the indictment. When Skjengen received the verdict of acquittal, she did not forward it to the state attorney until after the deadline for appealing the case had expired. The Bureau of Police Affairs believes it was a serious breach of duty and gives her a fine of NOK 8,000. Skjengen refuses to accept the proposal. She and her lawyer believe that the Bureau is wrong on a crucial point in criminal procedure law. It caused a stir when a violent Finnmarking was acquitted of a number of serious charges of violence and death threats two years ago. Police prosecutor Line Skjengen took over as prosecutor a few days before the trial. She concluded that there was no reliable evidence for the most serious points in the indictment. Therefore, she thought the only right thing to do was to waive these points. This means that the district court could not judge him for them. The acquittal led to strong reactions from both the defender and the victims who had reported the man for violence and threats. The public prosecutor established that the police in Finnmark had failed on several points. The police chief and another manager in the police district were reported to the Bureau of Police Affairs by the father of one of the victims of violence. Most went free. Line Skjengen was the only one who was punished. And she doesn’t accept that. Defense attorney John Christian Elden takes the case for the police attorney in Finnmark. Photo: Valentina Baisotti / news Refuses to accept subpoena Skjengen has been helped by the profiled lawyer Jon Christian Elden and is preparing for a trial over the subpoena of NOK 8,000. She received the punishment because she was not quick enough to forward the verdict to the public prosecutor. It was only forwarded when the appeal deadline had expired. Thus, it was too late to make another attempt to convict the man, according to the Bureau. This point is the major dispute in the case. “The State Attorney’s right to appeal is preserved even for records that have been waived,” writes the Bureau. But Jon Christian Elden disagrees. He believes that the law does not in any case allow the prosecution to appeal a judgment once the charges have been dropped. In contrast to the Bureau, he substantiates the claim with reference to the law and to legal theory: “A decision on waiver under the first paragraph can hardly be overturned, at least not after an acquittal has been handed down,” says the commentary to the Criminal Procedure Act. The book was written by, among others, Supreme Court judge Knut Erik Sæther and former court judge Hans Kristian Bjerke. This interpretation agrees with what Line Skjengen has said to the Bureau – but has not been believed. Supreme Court judge Knut Erik Sæther is among the authors of a book that supports Line Skjengen’s interpretation of the law. Photo: Martin Solhaug Standal / NTB There may be consequences Skjengen thought it was more important to prioritize other matters, including the questioning of children, than to send over a case that was settled and settled anyway. Following the referral from the Bureau, Skjengen has received a warning from his employer, the Finnmark police district. – It could have consequences both for the position I am in, salary, future tasks, that type of thing, says Skjengen. – If you are going to be employed by the police, you must basically have a spotless record. So for future jobs, this could have obvious consequences in that I could be excluded as a job seeker because I have a criminal record. Assistance lawyer Vibeke Lindstrøm wrote a complaint when the Bureau initially dismissed the case for all those responsible in the Finnmark police district. Photo: Knut-Sverre Horn / news Support from colleagues According to Skjengen, most of her colleagues have refused to support her openly. The tone has been completely different in private messages and conversations with other police lawyers, she says. – Many of the feedback points to the fact that these are things that happen all the time: that, due to a lack of resources, we have to prioritize in such a way that less serious cases, less judgments, or judgments that we believe are correct, are left behind, says Skjengen. – There are many who have expressed that they have experienced the same thing several times. According to Skjengen, the report has also led to police lawyers becoming more afraid of making mistakes, and that they spend time logging what they do to keep their backs clear. She believes the prosecutor has a duty to drop cases in court if the evidence does not hold up, as she herself did. It is important for trust in the prosecution, she believes.
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The police prosecutor in Finnmark does not accept submissions from the Bureau – news Troms and Finnmark
