There are technically four different degrees of suspicion in Sweden: kan misstänkas (could be suspected), skäligen misstänkt (suspected on reasonable grounds), på sannolika skäl misstänkt (probable cause) and tillräckliga skäl för åtal (sufficient grounds for prosecution).
You’re most likely to only hear the middle two used, skäligen misstänkt and på sannolika skäl misstänkt.
The difference between the four degrees of suspicion is often explained using an example with a missing wallet.
Let’s start with the lowest degree of suspicion, kan misstänkas (could be suspected).
Imagine that a wallet has disappeared from a classroom. There were several people in the room, who all could have had something to do with the wallet disappearing, and there are no clues or evidence pointing towards any specific individual.
In this situation, anyone who could be suspected of committing a crime, could be held in order for police to carry out an interrogation, but never for more than 12 hours.
If the crime they’re suspected of carries a potential prison sentence, then police have the power to carry out a body search, and in the case of a serious crime, police may also have the right to carry out a search of the suspect’s property.
The next degree of suspicion, skäligen misstänkt or suspected on reasonable grounds, could, for example, mean that a witness saw someone standing next to the spot where the wallet was before it disappeared.
Essentially, there has to be some sort of concrete, objective evidence or situation which could suggest that the person in question was involved in the crime.
In this situation, police are generally allowed to carry out a home search. In some situations, such as if the crime could carry a prison sentence of more than a year, there’s a risk of the suspect trying to escape, hide evidence, influence witnesses or continuing to commit crimes, then a prosecutor can instead ask the court to remand the person in custody pending the investigation (häkte).
Police also have the right to carry out body searches or listen in on suspect’s phone calls if they’re suspected of a major crime, and they could be given a travel ban and be forced to report to a police station regularly to ensure that they haven’t disobeyed the ban.
The third degree of suspicion, på sannolika skäl misstänkt, or probable cause, could in our wallet example mean that someone was seen taking the wallet.
This is similar to skäligen misstänkt, although there needs to be more evidence tying them to the crime for it to fall under this higher category of suspicion, like some sort of technical evidence at the crime scene or a witness who sees them commit the crime, rather than just someone who saw them in the area when the crime was committed.
Police also have the same powers when it comes to cases of people suspected on reasonable grounds and on probable cause.
Finally, the highest degree of suspicion, tillräckliga skäl för åtal, or sufficient grounds for prosecution, means that the prosecutor has enough evidence that they are reasonably certain the suspect would be convicted if the case made it to the courts.
Essentially, the prosecutor expects that the courts would agree that it is beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant is guilty of whatever the prosecutor is accusing them of. Going back to our example, this could mean that the suspect was caught red-handed stealing the wallet.
An important aspect here is that for the crime to fall under this degree of suspicion, there can’t be any other reasonable alternative explanation for the suspect’s actions. Were they, for example, picking up the wallet to return it to its rightful owner, or to hand it over to someone like a teacher or the police, so it didn’t get lost? If there's a possible alternative explanation, then the crime would usually fall under a lower category of suspicion.
Once someone is suspected of a crime, (delges misstanke om brott), the next step is to carry out a preliminary investigation or förundersökning. Once this is complete, the prosecutor can choose whether to drop the case (lägga ner) or file charges against the suspect (väcka åtal) with the relevant court, who will then try the case and decide whether to sentence the person or not.
Again, the prosecutor will only file charges if they’re certain there’s enough evidence that they can expect the suspect to be charged (bli dömd) and given a sentence (straffad).
Sweden does not have a bail system, and suspects are not tried by a jury.
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