The police have mapped out nearly 700 individuals in Sweden who are high-risk actors in relationship violence or potential serial offenders.
The aim is to be able to take action before a crime is committed – and thereby shift the focus from only working with the victim to also including the perpetrator.
We've never done that before. We've always worked with the woman, and tried to protect the woman. Now we're working much more preventively with the men, says national police chief Petra Lundh.
But despite the police's high hopes for the initiative, there are several obstacles. The current secrecy legislation, for example, makes it difficult to identify high-risk actors, she believes.
A lot of the men have been in contact with psychiatry, and here we have no information in our own registers. Then it becomes very difficult to act.
"Up to proof"
The work on risk profiles is part of police operation Beta, which was launched last year and is now being worked on by all regions.
Fredrik Liljeroos, responsible for operation Beta in the southern region, believes that the new method is a gold standard that has already yielded positive results, but also points to the secrecy legislation as an obstacle.
If psychiatry assesses that a person is dangerous, and we assess that they are dangerous, then it's something we must do something about, he says.
Is there something you've wished for from a political standpoint?
Yes, I've been in contact with Minister of Justice Gunnar Strömmer and the response has been positive. There will be new legislation, but from our side it's a bit unclear what it entails. It's up to proof.
Not a prioritization issue
The new legislation comes into force on April 1 and aims to increase the flow of information between authorities. According to Gunnar Strömmer, the healthcare sector's ability to share information with the police will increase significantly.
"It means a lot for being able to prevent partner violence and other serious crimes", he writes in a comment.
But unlike, for example, schools, the healthcare sector will only have an extended opportunity and not an obligation to provide information to the police.
According to Gunnar Strömmer, it's about protecting personal integrity.
"We don't want to end up in a situation where people avoid seeking care out of fear that their information will be passed on".
