Supervision of the Public Prosecution Service (OM)
The Procurator General at the Supreme Court can inform the Minister of Justice and Security if they believe that the Public Prosecution Service is not properly enforcing or implementing the legal requirements when performing its duties. In the context of this duty, the Procurator General conducts – mostly thematic – investigations into how the Public Prosecution Service performs its duties. In doing so, attention is always devoted to the legal quality of the duty being investigated.
Three investigations were completed in 2024, in which final reports were published. Two investigations were thematic in nature, while the third investigation was an incident investigation. The Procurator General presented the reports to the Minister of Justice and Security during the reporting year.
Supervision report 'Duty of care and witness protection'
In the supervision report entitled 'Duty of care and witness protection', the main question was whether the Public Prosecution Service was properly enforcing and implementing the legal requirements when performing its duties in the protection of witnesses and their relatives which may or may not be covered by the witness protection system. No indications were found in the investigation that the Public Prosecution Service, in general, fulfils its duty of care for the protection of witnesses inadequately when performing its duties. However, the investigation did show that a number of procedural requirements are not respected, that loans are granted without repayment-oriented efforts and that documentation is inadequate.
Read the supervision report here.
Supervision report 'Special conditions at V.I.'
It was investigated in the supervision report 'Special conditions at V.I.' whether the Public Prosecution Service complied with the legal requirements when imposing special conditions on a release on probation. It was found that this is the case for the most part. Occasionally, however, special conditions were found to be insufficiently clearly defined or unnecessary. Additionally, there is no clear framework as to what is meant by supervising compliance with the conditions, and what decisions the Public Prosecution Service can leave to the probation service during such supervision.
Read the supervision report here.
Supervision report 'Handled with care?'
The third supervision report presented to the Minister in 2024 concerns an incident investigation into the Public Prosecution Service's actions prior to a stabbing incident in a supermarket at Turfmarkt in The Hague on 20 June 2023. This investigation is the first incident investigation launched by the Procurator General in addition to an investigation by the Inspectorate of Justice and Security. It was concluded in the report that not all information about the suspect's judicial record was listed on the suspect's judicial documentation (criminal record). It was also noted that the exchange of information within the Public Prosecution Service could be improved and that the communication between the Public Prosecution Service and the prison system needed attention. Individual employees of the Public Prosecution Service who were involved in criminal investigations against the suspect, given the knowledge available to them at the time, did not act unreasonably.
Read the supervision report here.
Ongoing investigation
The investigation launched in 2023 into the Public Prosecution Service's dismissal of criminal cases and whether the Public Prosecution Service is properly complying with applicable legal requirements in the performance of this task was continued in 2024. The results of the investigation are expected in 2025.