There are several possible outcomes when the Attorney General’s decision in the Baneheia case about Viggo Kristiansen’s guilt or innocence comes on Friday.
Updated just now
The Attorney General presents the decision on Viggo Kristiansen’s guilt or innocence in the Baneheia murders at a press conference at 1 p.m.
Stine Sofie Sørstrønen (8) and Lena Sløgedal Paulsen (10) were found raped and killed in Baneheia in May 2000. The former comrades Viggo Kristiansen and Jan Helge Andersen were convicted of assault and murder.
Andersen’s DNA was found at the scene, but there is no conclusive evidence against Kristiansen. He was found guilty due to the overall evidence in the case.
After Viggo Kristiansen had his case reopened in 2021, the police in Oslo had the job of investigating the case with new eyes.
Kristiansen has always denied guilt, and fought to be cleared.
Now the Attorney General has decided.
Viggo Kristiansen – the possible outcomes
Professor Morten Holmboe at the Norwegian Police Academy is an expert in criminal proceedings. He explains that there are now several possible outcomes for the way forward in the case.
First and foremost is the question of whether the Attorney General believes Viggo Kristiansens is guilty or whether he must be acquitted.
- The prosecution believes that Viggo Kristiansen is guilty. There will be a new, full-fledged trial to get Kristiansen convicted or acquitted. This will probably last several weeks, and will be dealt with in the Borgarting Court of Appeal.
- The prosecution believes that Viggo Kristiansen must be acquitted. A court decision is still needed to overturn the old sentence, but the court is unlikely to have grounds for finding Kristiansen guilty. In that case, punishment must be meted out for the other conditions for which Viggo Kristiansen was convicted, assault and violation of privacy. Such a trial will probably only last a few days.
This can happen with Jan Helge Andersen
It is unclear whether the Attorney General will decide whether Jan Helge Andersen’s sentence should be reopened. Professor Holmboe says there are two possible outcomes if they believe Andersen is now guilty:
- The prosecution believes that Jan Helge Andersen is guilty of both murders. Then they can request that the judgment against him from Kristiansand District Court in 2002, where he was convicted of one murder and acquitted of another, be reopened. If the Re-admission Commission says yes, a new charge can be brought against him in a district court. The District Court is not bound by what the Borgarting Court of Appeal has reached in the case against Kristiansen.
- The prosecution may consider waiting until after Viggo Kristiansen’s case has been dealt with in the Court of Appeal, before they decide whether they want to request the reopening of Jan Helge Andersen’s old judgment.
– I am guessing that the investigation has given the prosecution a clear idea of what they want to do with Jan Helge Andersen, but it is quite possible that they will wait to come out with this, says Holmboe.
- The murder of Lena Sløgedal Paulsen remains unsolved. If If the prosecution does not think they can prove that Jan Helge Andersen is guilty, nor can they prove that someone else did it, the murder can remain unsolved.
There is also a theoretical possibility that Viggo Kristiansen withdraws his reopening request, which he can do right up until a new main hearing starts – and also during the process if the prosecution says yes. In that case, the old judgment against him will stand.
The court has the last word
Holmboe emphasizes that regardless of what the Attorney General thinks, the Borgarting Court of Appeal has the last word in Viggo Kristiansen’s case:
In any case, another judgment is needed to replace the old judgment.
– But if the prosecution believes they have evidence that can exclude that Kristiansen has something to do with Baneheia, it will be important to say this very clearly, he says of Friday’s decision.
The benefit of the doubt should be given to both
If Viggo Kristiansen is acquitted, the murder of Lena Sløgedal Paulsen remains unsolved.
Jan Helge Andersen was previously acquitted of her murder, but in the new investigation DNA has been found linking him to sexual acts against her.
Holmboe reminds that an acquittal for Kristiansen does not automatically mean that Andersen must be sentenced for it.
– We must remember that the defendant should always be given the benefit of the doubt. Here we are at both ends of the scale: The benefit of the doubt should be given to both Kristiansen and Andersen.
How confident the prosecution is in Andersen’s case will therefore be decisive for a possible reopening:
– Only if the prosecution finds that Andersen is guilty beyond all reasonable doubt, they can ask for the case to be reopened.
– Tried to find out everything
On the other hand, it will be important for the Attorney General to say so today if they believe that there are no grounds for reopening the case against Andersen, Holmboe believes.
– He is accused of both false accusation and murder, and it will be important to emphasize that if they do not think it can be proven.
Holmboe takes it for granted that it will be much faster to get a new indictment if Andersen’s case is reopened.
– I think the reason why the Oslo police have now spent so long on the case is that they have tried to find out everything. They have also charged Andersen in the second murder in this investigation, and have been approved by the court. Everything indicates that this has been investigated very thoroughly.
A new trial can happen quickly
How quickly we will get a court decision for Viggo Kristiansen will depend on the outcome. If the entire evidence picture is to be reviewed again, it must be set aside for many months due to the scope of the case, explains Holmboe.
– If not, it is probably just a matter of a few days in court, explains Holboe.
– It is reasonable that the case comes up in court quickly. If it turns out that a man has spent 21 years in prison for something he did not do, it should not be a lengthy process.
