The Danish Court System

We spent Tuesday in Svendborg learing about the Danish Court System.  We began our day at the Svendborg Courthouse where we were educated on the structure and function of the court system by a judge and prosecutor.  The Danish court system consists of 3 levels the city courts, appeals courts and supreme court.  We also learned that the role of the prosector is to remain neutral and to determine what happened then to recommend a sentence as low as possible approriate to the severity of the crime.  The goal of the defense and prosecuting attorney is to ensure that justice is served...not necessarily to win the case. 

While at  the courthouse we toured the cells in which prisoners are held while they await trial.  We also observed a trial.  Within 30 minutes a petty theft suspect, who had been apprehended on Monday, was tried, convicted, sentenced and taken to prison.  What an efficient system! 

Following our visit to the courthouse we traveled to the Svendborg police station.  There we talked to police officers, the prosecutor and a defense attorney about crime in Denmark.  We were all interested to learn that police officers do not always carry guns and that private citizens are not permitted to carry pepper spray.  We visited a holding cell and the fingerprinting/mug shot room and looked at a surviellance monitor and a two way mirror. 

We ended our day with a visit to a hgih security, closed prison.  The goal of the prison is to make life as normal as possible for the prisoners.  Women and men are kept in the same prison and dating is not prohibited.  Additionally, women are allowed to keep their children in the prison with them if they receive permission from the court, until the child is 3 years old.  Prisoners have access to the outdoors from each of their rooms from 7am to 9pm and cook their own meals.  There are no bars on the windows or barbed wire to keep the prisoners contained.  There is a wall and while the system is vastly different from what we are used to it seem to work in Denmark.