Increased simplicity in removing foreign culprits from Denmark proposed through amended sentencing regulations
Danish Sentencing Reforms to Enhance Deportation of Criminal Foreign Nationals
A new proposal for sentencing reforms by the Danish government on Thursday could make it simpler to deport foreign nationals convicted of crimes, an expert explained.
Under the new sentencing regime, severe violent crimes will see sentences doubled, and penalties for rape and assault on a partner will increase by 50%, the government announced.
Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard stated the government aims to prioritize the victim's perspective, and convicted criminals should face the consequences of their actions.
"The length of the punishment is an expression of how seriously the crime is viewed nationally. So, all in all, it will make deportation easier," Law Professor Jens Elo Rytter told newspaper Politiken.
However, the proposal does not address the potential impact of longer sentences on the likelihood of deportation for foreign offenders. Current Danish immigration laws mandate that foreign nationals convicted of crimes and given a sentence, regardless of its length, must be deported, with exceptions made only if doing so violates Denmark's international obligations.
Rytter explained that judges must weigh the seriousness of the crime against an individual's human rights, including the right to family life, and sentence length plays a significant role in that assessment. Consequently, the government's proposed sentencing reform, which introduces harsher penalties for various crimes, could facilitate the deportation of convicted foreigners.
Immigration and Integration Minister Kaare Dybvad has also proposed modifying deportation regulations this year, seeking to remove obstacles that grow more challenging to deport a foreign national the longer they reside in Denmark. His proposal suggests that only Denmark's international obligations, particularly human rights conventions, should determine the feasibility of deportation when a foreign national receives an unconditional prison sentence.
Denmark is investing more than DKK 7.5 billion into the proposed sentencing reforms and expanding the prison capacity by 2030, but no legislative changes have been announced explicitly linking sentencing reforms to immigration or deportation procedures. Therefore, the impact on the ease of deporting foreign nationals could remain indirect, subject to existing immigration law frameworks.
- The proposed sentencing reforms in Denmark could potentially have an influence on the culture of justice, as harsher penalties for crimes may be seen as a statement about the general-news priorities of the government.
- The increased sentence lengths resulting from the sentencing reforms could potentially impact the art of sentencing, as judges may need to weigh the seriousness of the crime against an individual's human rights more carefully, given the potential implications for deportation.
- The ongoing discussions about sentencing reforms and deportation regulations in Denmark suggest a relationship between space (physical separation of individuals) and politics, as the government seeks to ensure foreign nationals convicted of crimes are deported in accordance with the nation's values and international obligations.
