Various regional dailies, 30 Aug 2013: 'Case of abuse of power'

“Reflections - Rob Krabben

In all honesty, I must say that at first I also thought the judges in Den Bosch had gone crazy. Three perpetrators of that aggravated and senseless beating of a man in Eindhoven were given sharply reduced sentences because footage of the violence had been released by the prosecution.

It also sounds utter madness: the police should track down the perpetrators, and then if they succeed by deploying images taken in public spaces, those perpetrators should be dealt with with velvet gloves? Surely not!
In the second instance, the case turns out to be a bit more nuanced. In fact, the judges give the public prosecutor a hefty slap on the wrist because insufficient care was taken in the decision to disclose the footage. The prosecutor who gave his consent to it was not even authorised to do so.

It is painful that precisely in such a serious case, which deeply shook the whole country, the perpetrators got off relatively cheaply. But it is perfectly understandable that the courts guard and protect the purity of criminal proceedings. (...)

And at the same time, interest group Privacy First announces it will bring a case before the European Court of Human Rights against road side checks on Dutch roads, where data of citizens who are not suspected of anything are used for all kinds of investigative purposes. Could well turn out to be another case of abuse of power. Fortunately, we still have the independent judge."

Source: De Stentor / Zwolse Courant, Veluws Dagblad, Zutphen Dagblad, Sallands Dagblad, Nieuw Kamper Dagblad, Gelders Dagblad, Dagblad Flevoland, Deventer Dagblad, Apeldoornse Courant, 30 August 2013.