Column | And so I ended up at a criminal case that didn’t let me go

To most of the criminal cases that I have for the Monday section ‘The session’ in NRC Attend, I have to keep pressing at most. That the majority of the suspects acted impulsively, out of greed, out of aggression, under the influence or lust. Rarely has it been thought. At most there was a fleeting thought about the criminal or chance of being caught. The assumption to ‘get away with’ or the wrong idea that ‘this was possible’.

Distingly many suspects appear to be low gifted, illiterate or otherwise socially fell over the edge. I once saw a psychiatric be tried patient, Who asked the judge every few minutes if she could « go home now », being a room in an establishment.

Which makes more lasting impression traffic crimes With fatal outcome. There it is about recklessness versus carelessness and the suspect is often just as deep in the pit as the relatives. Dying in traffic is pretty much the rawest overwhelming that can have life for the careful citizen in store. And really everyone with a car key in their pocket can come for the criminal court, you know afterwards. Debt is in a very small corner here.

In the lists for the press with session information of the eleven courts, I prefer to choose cyber crime (on the rise), ‘white borders’ (rare) and ‘professional’ (idem). They can usually be recognized by the lists with expected offenses, distributed in time and location. Apparently they consciously chose the ‘wrong path’. The ‘criminals’ label fits better with that than with the average sukkelaar in the criminal bench. Who is cold -blooded six burglaries in a row? Because it poused, was easy, nobody went after you? Where do you put the proceeds, who tells you where you should be?

So I ended up in a case with a ‘vocational’ Who unexpectedly didn’t let go. The multiple criminal room in Utrecht gave a co -perpetrator of four times ‘scams with chat tricks’ here and there in the Netherlands sixteen months in prison, four of which are conditional. I caught myself that I didn’t like that. What it is not – on Rechtspraak.nl this category is more than occurred. This verdict fits in perfectly with the bandwidth. The criminal court did it nicely.

So I couldn’t have done that. At the time, I went home internally after the session. This **** turned out to be specialized in robbing people over 80. They were recommended in sometimes hours of telephonades with a fake employee of ‘the police’ or ‘De Bank’ about acute threat of home robbery, burglary or bank fraud to hand over their jewelry, electronics or bank cards at the door. The suspect then helped at the door. So that ‘the authorities’ could bring them to safety, ‘in a vault’ or ‘she could have it valued quickly’ for insurance. Etc.

At the hearing, an employee of Victim Support had explained how the victims were doing now – and that was not good. Damage had been suffered for tens of thousands of euros, which actually disappeared against the emotional and psychological blow that had been distributed.

So it went wrong with me. Everyone who has also been an informal caregiver for a very elderly sees how a strong and dear family member turns into a helpless, fearful and vulnerable shadow of the past. Certainly if the years really progress. The dependence becomes huge, things from the past are a hold, jewelry get extra emotional value, especially if they belong to half forgotten heights. The panic if something is ‘lost’ is heartbreaking. And so something has been lost. Old people slowly get lost in themselves. The closest family member is the last guidance. And he gets a tick.

That made me unsuitable to attend this criminal session without prejudice. And to pay something of reasonableness for the 22-year-old perpetrator, who is new in the Netherlands, now has a fight with his father, debts with the health insurance company and of course wrong friends, especially on Snapchat, where they wave money. Also to him. Criminal judges and officers ensure that this type of boys/bastards are punished about the same. The probation service then keeps them in the poll for a while.

Maybe this boy can still be put on the right path, which I would applaud. And would also be the best for everyone. But I am not ready for forgiveness. That can also take a while.

Sorry. I do my best.

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