The Public Prosecution Service is accountable to two separate
authorities. On the one hand, the courts review the conduct of
the Public Prosecution Service and the police services. But at
the same time, the Minister of Justice has political
responsibility for the Department's conduct and performance, and
he may be called upon to render account to both houses of the
Dutch parliament. Policy is therefore always on the agenda in
consultations between the Public Prosecution Service and the
Minister.
The Minister is concerned with general policy on investigation
and prosecution. Only rarely does he intervene in individual
cases, although he may issue instructions to the Department's
officers after consulting the Board of Procurators General.
National Office of the Public
Prosecution Service
The Public Prosecution Service's highest authority, the Board of
Procurators General, lays down policy on investigation and
prosecution. The committee and its staff form the Department's
head office.
The organisation of the Public Prosecution Service corresponds to
the various types of law court in the Netherlands. First there
are sub-district courts, followed by the district courts, the
courts of appeal and finally the Supreme Court.
District courts
There are 19 law courts in the Netherlands, each covering what is
known as a court district. The Public Prosecution Service has an
office - the public prosecutors' office - in every city with a
court of law. Each of these offices is under the authority of a
chief public prosecutor whose mandate is to ensure that the
policy of the Public Prosecution Service is implemented in his
district.
The public prosecutors employed at these offices represent the
Public Prosecution Service in sub-district and district courts.
They are assisted by secretaries and an office staff, who may
deal with certain cases themselves, such as contravention of
traffic regulations and other minor offences. They also do the
groundwork in more serious cases which only the public prosecutor
can deal with.
The 19 court district offices vary in size, the largest being in
Amsterdam and Rotterdam, the cities with the highest crime
rates.
Regional courts
Several court districts are grouped together to serve a specific
geographical region. Each court region has a court of appeal and
a Procurator General's office. There are five courts of appeal in
the Netherlands. Their main function is to review contested
judgments handed down by a lower court. Both the defendant and
the public prosecutor may lodge an appeal. In this event, the
public prosecutor transfers the case to the office in the
appropriate appeal court region. The Public Prosecution Service
is represented in court by an official from the office for that
region. The person acting in this capacity is called an advocate
general. In court, however, he has the title of Procurator
General.
Region covered by 's-Hertogenbosch Court of Appeal
1 's-Hertogenbosch court district
2 Breda court district
3 Maastricht court district
4 Roermond court district
Region covered by Arnhem Court of Appeal
5 Arnhem court district
6 Zutphen court district
7 Zwolle court district
8 Almelo court district
Region covered by The Hague Court of Appeal
9 The Hague court district
10 Rotterdam court district
11 Dordrecht court district
12 Middelburg court district
Region covered by Amsterdam Court of Appeal
13 Amsterdam court district
14 Alkmaar court district
15 Haarlem court district
16 Utrecht court district
Region covered by Leeuwarden Court of Appeal
17 Leeuwarden court district
18 Groningen court district
19 Assen court district
The national
prosecutor's office
The national prosecutor's office (landelijk parket) in Rotterdam is not linked to a particular district court or an appeal court, since it focuses on (international) organised crime.
One of its tasks is to develop new methods for investigating financial offences such as money-laundering. The Office is also in charge of a national investigation team that specialises in offences of this kind. Another of its responsibilities is to coordinate efforts to combat terrorism, trafficking in persons and similar offences.
The Board of Procurators General also has tasked the National Prosecutor's Office with the development of expertise in special investigation powers and ICT criminality.
Furthermore, the National Prosecutor's Office often participates in the criminal law activities of other public prosecution offices in the form of prosecution-related services in the fields of infiltration and witness protection, coordination of the deployment of the Central Criminal Intelligence Division. The National Prosecutor's Office is also the link between the Public Prosecution Service and the intelligence and security services.
The Procurator General's Office at
the Supreme Court
Finally, an office headed by a Procurator General is attached to
the Supreme Court, the highest court of the Netherlands. This is
where appeals in cassation from judgments given by a lower court
can be heard. The Supreme Court is not concerned with the guilt
or innocence of the appellant: its brief is solely to ascertain
whether the law was applied correctly. Hence it will either quash
or uphold the judgment in question, or it may instruct a lower
court to hear the case afresh.
The Public Prosecution Service's role at the Supreme Court is
different from that in a district court or a court of appeal. It
does not demand that a particular sentence be imposed, but
advises on how a case should be dealt with. Moreover, the
Procurator General's Supreme Court office does not come under the
auspices of the Board of Procurators General and it is
independent of the Minister of Justice.
Deprivation of the proceeds of
crime
Crime must not be allowed to pay! Once a person has been
convicted, the Public Prosecution Service tries to recover any
proceeds they have obtained. During the hearing, the public
prosecutor may ask the court to order that such proceeds be
confiscated. The Public Prosecution Service has a special office
in Leeuwarden, the Proceeds of Crime Office (BOOM) to advise
public prosecutors in cases of this kind.
National Police Internal
Investigation Department
The National Police Internal Investigation Department is a small,
but highly specialised investigation service. It is responsible
for examining complaints concerning the conduct of government
officials and public servants. For example, it investigates
allegations of fraud or corruption against police officers, the
Public Prosecution Service, and staff employed by the municipal,
provincial and central authorities. The National Police Internal
Investigation Department also routinely investigates cases
involving injury or death following the use of firearms by the
police. The same applies in the event of a detainee's death in
prison.