CRIMINAL LAW

ARE YOU CHARGED IN A CRIMINAL CASE?

When can the police arrest you?
The police can arrest you if they believe there is a reasonable suspicion that you have committed a crime. They can also arrest you if they want to secure your presence or prevent you from committing further crimes. Additionally, the police can arrest you if they want to prevent you from harming or interfering with the investigation in a case.

However, the police can only hold you for up to 24 hours, after which you must be brought before a judge in a so-called preliminary hearing.

Preliminary Hearing
This means that a judge must decide whether you should be remanded in custody or released. Instead of remand, the judge can decide to maintain the arrest for 3 x 24 hours if there is not enough information to decide whether you should be remanded in custody.
Remand can last up to 4 weeks at a time, after which you must appear before a judge again. The judge will then decide whether the remand should be maintained or whether you should be released.

Mail and Visit Control
In some cases, you may be subjected to mail and visit control during remand. This means that the police will generally read your letters and monitor your visits. Of course, this does not apply to your conversations with and visits from your defense attorney.

Criminal Cases without Arrest or Remand

In some criminal cases, it is not necessary to be arrested or remanded at all. In these cases, the police will investigate the case without deprivation of liberty, and if charges are brought, the court will summon you to a court hearing in the case, where a judgment will be handed down.

Finances
If the court appoints a defense attorney, the state will generally cover the costs of the defense attorney's fee. If you are convicted in the case, you must reimburse the costs to the state. However, if you are acquitted, you do not have to pay the costs.

You can freely choose a defense attorney.

You can read more about costs and finances during a criminal case here