More suspects getting lower sentences due to capacity problems at police, prosecutor

The Dutch police, Public Prosecution Service (OM), and courts are overwhelmed with more work than they can handle. This is increasingly leading to convicts receiving lighter sentences because their cases took too long. No exact figures are available, but this occurs weekly in courts across the Netherlands, AD reported.

In legal terms, the OM can request a lighter sentence if a case “exceeds the reasonable time frame.” Generally, that is two years, though for suspects in custody or minor suspects, it is 16 months. It means that a verdict must be reached within two years from the moment the individual learns they are a suspect in a criminal case.

The rationale behind the reasonable timeframe is that waiting for a trial creates significant uncertainty and tension for both suspects and victims, a spokesperson for the court in Den Bosch explained to AD. “In general, it is in the interest of both victims and defendants to have clarity about their situation as soon as possible. Legal proceedings often impose a heavy emotional burden, and people may only be able to truly move on with their lives once the judge has delivered a verdict.”

Both the courts and OM acknowledged that more cases are exceeding this reasonable timeframe, often resulting in lighter sentences for the suspects involved. "However, the 'sentence reduction' granted in such cases is generally quite modest, and it is also possible for the court to simply 'note' the delay without attaching any legal consequence—meaning no sentence reduction is applied," a spokesperson for the OM in Den Bosch told the newspaper. He also stressed that “the vast majority of cases” are brought before a judge in time.

Cases taking longer than they should are largely due to high workloads across all levels of the criminal justice chain. But the OM spokesperson stressed that there are also other reasons for cases exceeding the reasonable timeframe. Requests for further investigation by the defense can also cause delays, for example.

"Furthermore, investigations are becoming increasingly complex and extensive. Because there are resource constraints throughout the entire judicial chain, it often takes longer for a public prosecutor to receive, for example, a report on a suspect's mental state,” the OM spokesperson said, adding: "Not everything is treated with the same level of urgency. It is important to understand that cases involving suspects in pre-trial detention or cases involving minors are given priority when scheduling court hearings."