Enquiry into the different levels of authority assigned to investigation leaders by the Swedish Police Authority

Summary of the decision: On his own initiative, the Parliamentary Ombudsman has conduced an investigation into the competence of police officers to lead investigations. During the review, it emerged that the Swedish Police Authority applies three levels of authority in terms of the right of investigation leaders to decide on coercive measures. Two of these apply to patrol operations, one of which is so-called limited authority, which is usually assigned to a response officer.

While the Parliamentary Ombudsman sees no formal obstacle to limited authority in and of itself, he does conclude that this limited authority appears to be less compatible with the Code of Judicial Procedure’s systematic approach to coercive measures and the concern for legal certainty on which the system rests. Moreover, application does not appear to be uniform throughout the Swedish Police Authority and it is open to question whether there are adequate requirements for training and experience.

In the opinion of the Parliamentary Ombudsman, the Swedish Police Authority should review its use of limited authority in order to ensure that it is applied in a uniform, legally certain manner. The Parliamentary Ombudsman also sends a copy of the decision to the Government for information purposes.