– I think it will be quite a circus when it starts. Both with feelings and talk, says Karen-Marie Reitan. She is one of the women who has had her case against Arne Bye dismissed. news has previously told her story. Now she and the rest of the local community in Frosta are getting ready for the trial against the former municipal superintendent to start tomorrow. – I don’t think anyone can imagine how it will turn out. In Trøndelag district court, twelve weeks have passed since the case where the former municipal superintendent is accused of raping 88 of his patients. A total of 95 women have the status of offended. Bye has admitted raping three women. He has also admitted to having used his position to obtain sexual intercourse in 40 of the 95 cases for which he is charged. He pleads not guilty to the rest of the charges. Karen-Marie Reitan has had her case against Arne Bye dismissed. Photo: Morten Waagø / news – We will stand with our heads held high Karen-Marie is concerned that the local community must move on from the case. – Frosta is a fantastic place. Lush, green and growing. She is afraid that the name “Frosta-saka” will stick and mark the local community for a long time. She wishes the media had called the case something else. – Call it the medical case or call it the Arne case. But this has nothing to do with what is supposed to represent Frosta. – It shouldn’t be the case that you stand at a food festival and win prizes, but that people say “oh yes, do you come from Frosta? Are you one of them?”. She says the local community has a lot to be proud of. – We must stand with our heads held high, because we are not to blame. – We will stand up for each other. Frosta municipality has about 2,600 inhabitants. When Bye was stripped of his authorization in 2022, he was a GP for 850 patients. The police have previously said that a total of 209 women have had the status of offended during the investigation. – It leaves its mark in the local community when the scale is so large, says Frode Revhaug (H), mayor of Frosta. – It has been two demanding years, says Frode Revhaug about the time after the case became known. Photo: Morten Waagø / news He says the case has plagued the municipality since it broke in the summer of 2022. After an extensive police investigation, the indictment against Bye was finalized in September this year. – There has been a long period of police investigation. At the same time, there has also been a lot of media coverage. Now the mayor hopes the local community will stand up. – It will be a long court case, but we will stand up for each other and continue to care about each other. Revhaug points out that the municipality started the public health project “Frosta project: Best together”. Public health project launched Tore Erik Rønne has been appointed as project manager. Over several years, he will hire the work which, among other things, will take care of those affected by the case. – We have strengthened services such as rapid mental health care, a support center for victims of crime and the resource center for sexual abuse. He says the municipality also arranges conversation offers and information meetings for those who are relatives or victims, but are not part of the court case itself. – People have very different needs for what help they need. The project is also about stimulating activity and meeting places, says Rønne. – When an entire community is severely affected and burdened, it is good to gather as a community. Great media interest – In the first few weeks, I think there will be intense media pressure, says Camilla Kilnes. She is a journalist in Adresseavisen and is one of many journalists who will follow the case closely. When the trial starts in Trøndelag district court in Steinkjer, the presence of media from all over the country will be large. – I think it will be an issue that will set the agenda for many mediums, says Kilnes. – I think there is not a single person at Frosta who has not been affected by the case in one way or another, says Camilla Kilnes. Together with Pål Solberg, she will cover the case for Adresseavisen. Photo: Bent Lindsetmo / news Pål Solberg has worked on crime cases for Adresseavisen for a number of years. He says the case is unlike other cases he has covered. – It is a very special case, both when it concerns the number of victims and not least the actions that should have been taken. – There are no cases similar to this, neither in Trøndelag nor elsewhere in Norway. Arne Bye was formerly the chief municipal doctor in Frosta. The trial against him starts tomorrow. Photo: Tariq Alisubh / news That’s why news uses “Frosta-saka” Narese Sae-Khow is news editor at news Trøndelag. He tells news that news has chosen to use the term “Frosta case” for the case complex. – It is a concise and neutral way of placing the case geographically, without taking a position in the criminal case. Sae-Khow says that he understands that residents of Frosta can find the term “Frosta case” burdensome. – Nevertheless, we believe it is a comprehensive concept, precisely because the whole local community is affected by the case in various ways. That is why news uses the term “Frosta case” news has chosen to use the term “Frosta case” for this case complex because in a concise and neutral way it places this news case geographically, without taking a position on the ongoing criminal case against the long-standing municipal superintendent and GP Arne Bye. Bye is accused of abusing his position to obtain sexual relations with 95 of his patients. According to the indictment, he allegedly raped 88 of these patients. Bye pleads guilty to parts of the indictment. The trial starts on 5 November, and there are 12 weeks until the case in Trøndelag district court. Although the term “Frosta case” can be perceived as stigmatizing for the residents of the municipality, news believes that it is comprehensive. Precisely because the entire local community is affected in various ways by this very extensive criminal case. The municipality has started a three-year public health project based on this case. Published 04.11.2024, at 22.05
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– We are not to blame – news Trøndelag – Local news, TV and radio
