The Role of the Public Prosecutor in Relation to the Execution of Sanctions
Chapter IV
The Role of the Public Prosecutor in Relation to the Execution of Sanctions
To understand the role of the public prosecution service in the enforcement of sanctions, it is necessary to present the main organisational features of this activity in short.
The responsibility for execution of sanctions imposed by courts lies with the prison and probation service (Kriminalvårdsverket), which has a number of regional and local offices (Kriminalvårdsmyndigheter). From there, the organisation administrates the enforcement of sanctions, that is, the implementation of prison sentences and probation. Thus, the service is responsible for the supervision of conditionally released persons, implements sentences regarding community service, and so forth.
A number of different decisions affecting the rights and obligations of the sentenced persons are made at local level within the organisation. If the decisions of the local authorities have been appealed, or more serious decisions are at stake, the next step in the hierarchy is not a higher office of the prison and probation service, but one of the so called probation commissions (Övervakningsnämnder). The highest instance is the prison and probation commission (Kriminalvårdsnämnden). Thus, the commissions have judicial powers in the field of activities of the Swedish prison and probation service.
In the area just described, the public prosecution service is not involved at all. However, there are still a certain number of questions concerning enforcement of sanctions that is subject to the jurisdiction of the courts. Mostly, this concerns the necessity to change a sentence imposed by the court, in the case of a convicted person sentenced to a non-custodial sanction under condition that he would follow certain orders. If he does not comply with the conditions laid down either in the law or in the judgment, and the sanction must be changed, this can be done by the court only. In that case, the task of the public prosecutor is to bring the case to court – only a prosecutor is allowed to do this. It should be pointed out, that, in this context, the public prosecutor is not the authority that supervising compliance with the conditions. It is the task of the Swedish prison and probation service, or sometimes, as regards young offenders, the social service. These authorities hand the case over to the prosecutor.
An example is the conditional sentence connected with community service according to ch. 27 sect. 2a CC. If the sentenced person does not follow the prescriptions laid down in the judgment, the conditional sentence connected with community service may be converted to imprisonment. The decision can be made only by the court which has passed the first sentence. Thus, the Swedish prison and probation service, which manages enforcement of the first sentence, contacts the prosecutor who brings the case to court. The same proceeding takes place pursuant to ch. 27 sect. 5 and 6 CC (also the question about prescriptions in connection with conditional sentence), ch. 28 sects. 6a and 8 (changes concerning probation) and ch. 31 sect. 1 (community service for juveniles).
The second group of situations concerning enforcement of sanctions, where the public prosecution service fulfils some tasks, consists of decisions in the fields, which are not covered by the competence of the prison and probation service or other authorities active in this area. Actually, there are only two such areas. The first area is the enforcement of fines, the second psychiatric care imposed as a sanction for an offence.
The Fines Enforcement Act regulates the enforcement of fines (Bötesverkställighetslagen, 1979:189). An enforcement officer who belongs to the Enforcement Administration conducts the enforcement of fines. If an officer decides, that the enforcement should not take place because of a very bad economic situation of the person sentenced (sect. 12), the public prosecutor can appeal against the decision of the enforcement officer to the court (sect. 13).
According to ch. 25 sect. 8 CC, unpaid fines may be converted into imprisonment for at least fourteen days and at most three months in conformity with the provisions of the Fines Enforcement Act. The public prosecutor is empowered to initiate such conversion (sect. 15 Fines Enforcement Act). Again, it is not the public prosecutor who supervises implementation of sanctions, but he takes the measure on the basis of a report from – in this case – the enforcement administration. This situation occurs very occasionally in practice, no more than a few individuals yearly are dealt with through such proceedings.
The second area, which is not covered by the prison and probation service, is psychiatric care imposed as a sanction for a crime. The Swedish penal law does not contain the notion unaccountability (otillräknelighet). However, if somebody commits a crime under the influence of a serious mental derangement, the perpetrator may not be sentenced to imprisonment (ch. 30 sect. 6 CC). The sanction under such circumstances is leaving in psychiatric care (överlämnande till rättspsykiatrisk vård) (ch. 31 sect. 3 CC).
Psychiatric care as a sanction for a crime is implemented according to the Act on Psychiatric Care (Lag, 1991:1129, om rättspsykiatrisk vård). Pursuant to this law, the public prosecutor is involved in the enforcement of this sanction in that he supervises the decisions made during the period of care by the authorities involved (especially the administrative courts), hereby paying appropriate attention to the protection of society. The public prosecutor is empowered to appeal a number of decisions, e.g. about releasing of the sentenced person, getting of leave etc. The Office of the Prosecutor-General has issued guidelines concerning the activity of the public prosecutors in this field. The Ombudsman of the Parliament has stated his opinion concerning the activity of public prosecutors in this area also (Uttalanden om vilka rutiner som bör tillämpas när det gäller handläggningen av yttranden enligt 22 § lagen, 1991:1129, om rättspsykiatrisk vård, Dnr 4237-1996).
The Role of the Public Prosecutor in Relation to the Execution of Sanctions
To understand the role of the public prosecution service in the enforcement of sanctions, it is necessary to present the main organisational features of this activity in short.
The responsibility for execution of sanctions imposed by courts lies with the prison and probation service (Kriminalvårdsverket), which has a number of regional and local offices (Kriminalvårdsmyndigheter). From there, the organisation administrates the enforcement of sanctions, that is, the implementation of prison sentences and probation. Thus, the service is responsible for the supervision of conditionally released persons, implements sentences regarding community service, and so forth.
A number of different decisions affecting the rights and obligations of the sentenced persons are made at local level within the organisation. If the decisions of the local authorities have been appealed, or more serious decisions are at stake, the next step in the hierarchy is not a higher office of the prison and probation service, but one of the so called probation commissions (Övervakningsnämnder). The highest instance is the prison and probation commission (Kriminalvårdsnämnden). Thus, the commissions have judicial powers in the field of activities of the Swedish prison and probation service.
In the area just described, the public prosecution service is not involved at all. However, there are still a certain number of questions concerning enforcement of sanctions that is subject to the jurisdiction of the courts. Mostly, this concerns the necessity to change a sentence imposed by the court, in the case of a convicted person sentenced to a non-custodial sanction under condition that he would follow certain orders. If he does not comply with the conditions laid down either in the law or in the judgment, and the sanction must be changed, this can be done by the court only. In that case, the task of the public prosecutor is to bring the case to court – only a prosecutor is allowed to do this. It should be pointed out, that, in this context, the public prosecutor is not the authority that supervising compliance with the conditions. It is the task of the Swedish prison and probation service, or sometimes, as regards young offenders, the social service. These authorities hand the case over to the prosecutor.
An example is the conditional sentence connected with community service according to ch. 27 sect. 2a CC. If the sentenced person does not follow the prescriptions laid down in the judgment, the conditional sentence connected with community service may be converted to imprisonment. The decision can be made only by the court which has passed the first sentence. Thus, the Swedish prison and probation service, which manages enforcement of the first sentence, contacts the prosecutor who brings the case to court. The same proceeding takes place pursuant to ch. 27 sect. 5 and 6 CC (also the question about prescriptions in connection with conditional sentence), ch. 28 sects. 6a and 8 (changes concerning probation) and ch. 31 sect. 1 (community service for juveniles).
The second group of situations concerning enforcement of sanctions, where the public prosecution service fulfils some tasks, consists of decisions in the fields, which are not covered by the competence of the prison and probation service or other authorities active in this area. Actually, there are only two such areas. The first area is the enforcement of fines, the second psychiatric care imposed as a sanction for an offence.
The Fines Enforcement Act regulates the enforcement of fines (Bötesverkställighetslagen, 1979:189). An enforcement officer who belongs to the Enforcement Administration conducts the enforcement of fines. If an officer decides, that the enforcement should not take place because of a very bad economic situation of the person sentenced (sect. 12), the public prosecutor can appeal against the decision of the enforcement officer to the court (sect. 13).
According to ch. 25 sect. 8 CC, unpaid fines may be converted into imprisonment for at least fourteen days and at most three months in conformity with the provisions of the Fines Enforcement Act. The public prosecutor is empowered to initiate such conversion (sect. 15 Fines Enforcement Act). Again, it is not the public prosecutor who supervises implementation of sanctions, but he takes the measure on the basis of a report from – in this case – the enforcement administration. This situation occurs very occasionally in practice, no more than a few individuals yearly are dealt with through such proceedings.
The second area, which is not covered by the prison and probation service, is psychiatric care imposed as a sanction for a crime. The Swedish penal law does not contain the notion unaccountability (otillräknelighet). However, if somebody commits a crime under the influence of a serious mental derangement, the perpetrator may not be sentenced to imprisonment (ch. 30 sect. 6 CC). The sanction under such circumstances is leaving in psychiatric care (överlämnande till rättspsykiatrisk vård) (ch. 31 sect. 3 CC).
Psychiatric care as a sanction for a crime is implemented according to the Act on Psychiatric Care (Lag, 1991:1129, om rättspsykiatrisk vård). Pursuant to this law, the public prosecutor is involved in the enforcement of this sanction in that he supervises the decisions made during the period of care by the authorities involved (especially the administrative courts), hereby paying appropriate attention to the protection of society. The public prosecutor is empowered to appeal a number of decisions, e.g. about releasing of the sentenced person, getting of leave etc. The Office of the Prosecutor-General has issued guidelines concerning the activity of the public prosecutors in this field. The Ombudsman of the Parliament has stated his opinion concerning the activity of public prosecutors in this area also (Uttalanden om vilka rutiner som bör tillämpas när det gäller handläggningen av yttranden enligt 22 § lagen, 1991:1129, om rättspsykiatrisk vård, Dnr 4237-1996).
