The Dutch perspective

To understand the subtleties of the Dutch penal law system related to forensic assessment, a few interrelated procedural characteristics are of great importance in shaping its context. This chapter addresses more substantive characteristics related to sentencing, such as criminal responsibility and the nature of sentences may be of equal impact on the contents of the assessment. As in most continental European jurisdictions, the criminal process may be best characterised as an inquisitorial system, in which the judge is the driving force in fact-finding, in contrast with adversarial justice systems, generally stemming from the Anglo-American common law tradition, in which parties play that role. The Dutch sentencing system has evolved away from its former dogmatic rigidity to a highly flexible system in many aspects. The presence of behavioural experts in some decision-making bodies, like the RSJ and the Penitentiary Chamber, serves in a sense as a review on the expert assessment.