This report concerns the police’s discontinuation of cases concerning crime against the person.
The purpose of the study is to assess whether the police’s practice for handling a number of matters in connection with crime against the person is satisfactory. Rigsrevisionen answers the following questions in the report:
- Do the police refrain from registering regular criminal cases even though they have reasonable grounds to suspect that a criminal offence has been committed?
- Do the police discontinue cases with investigative potential without investigating them?
- Have the cases been discontinued by authorised personnel and with correct explanations to the injured party?
Rigsrevisionen finds the police’s practice in relation to crime against the person highly unsatisfactory. In some areas, the police register cases as cases with a lower sentencing range and fewer requirements for the investigation, and there is a large number of cases that the police have not investigated, even though they informed the injured party otherwise. In addition, a large number of cases have been discontinued by employees who were not authorised to do so and, in some cases, with an incorrect explanation. The consequence of the practice may be that cases concerning crime against the person that could have been solved are not solved.
Rigsrevisionen initiated the study in March 2025 at the request of the Danish Public Accounts Committee.