Complex Cases: Perspectives on the Netherlands Criminal Justice System

Six fascinating cases - including allegations of a murder by shooting a ballpoint pen into a woman's head, of assisted suicide and of euthanasia - form the basis of this book. These cases were complicated by the fact that the experts who reported disagreed on various key points. Nevertheless, the judges had to make a decision.

Through the use of these examples, this book outlines the Dutch system of dealing with criminal cases. In the Netherlands, experts are generally called in, not by the parties in the case, but by the judge, the police or the public prosecutor. The book discusses the advantages and disadvantages of this system as compared with that in Common Law countries. The historical development of the criminal justice system and the role of justification of judicial decisions are also considered in detail. The resulting picture is of a judicial system which, despite an appearance of informality, rests too heavily on formalities and allows too little actual verification of facts and proof.