The project examines how the “fast-track” for juvenile offenders, an arrangement for the accelerated processing of criminal cases involving young offenders, functions in practice.
Through an interdisciplinary approach that combines qualitative and quantitative methods, the researchers will assess whether the fast-track for juvenile offenders provides faster, better, and more legally secure processes for children and young people aged 15 to 17.
The evaluation will shed light on how the fast-track works for actors throughout the criminal justice chain, other affected stakeholders, young people and their guardians, as well as injured parties (victims).
An important objective of the project is to provide recommendations on how the fast-track can be further developed. This knowledge has considerable practical relevance, as the fast-track is planned to be rolled out nationwide.
Themes and Questions Addressed by the Evaluation
The evaluation focuses on a broad range of questions that, taken together, will provide a comprehensive assessment of the fast-track. The study examines how the it is organised in different police districts, how collaboration and work processes function across sectors, and what consequences the scheme has for processing times, resource use, and the application of different criminal sanctions.
The project also takes a closer look at how young people, guardians, and injured parties experience case processing, what information and follow-up they receive, and how changes in legislation affect their participation and legal safeguards. Finally, the evaluation analyses the results achieved by the fast-track so far, identifies areas for improvement, and considers which success criteria should form the basis for the further national development of the fast-track for juvenile offenders.
More about the project
A Broad Methodological and Data Foundation
The project is based on a comprehensive and diverse body of data, combining document studies, interviews, survey research, statistical analyses, and socio-economic assessments.
This provides the evaluation with both a broad overview and a detailed understanding of how the fast-track operates in practice. Data collection includes all key institutions in the criminal justice chain, as well as young people, guardians, and injured parties affected by the fast-track..
By comparing qualitative experiences with quantitative trends, the project examines issues such as organisation, case flow, resource utilisation, sanction patterns, and the experiences of young people throughout the process.
Interdisciplinary Research with Complementary Expertise
The work is carried out by an interdisciplinary research team with extensive experience in evaluations, the justice sector, child and youth research, sociology, criminology, socio-economics, and law.
The team is led by Helge Renå and includes researchers from NIBR, NOVA, the University of Agder, the Institute of Transport Economics (TØI), the Norwegian Police University College, and the University of Bergen. This breadth of expertise makes it possible to examine the fast-track from multiple professional perspectives, ranging from organisation and cooperation between stakeholders, and the legal framework, to young people’s legal protection and the socio-economic effects of potentially faster case processing.
