2 REMAND 2 Remand A prosecutor may, under certain circumstances, request a court to detain a person on remand who is suspected of a crime or has received a custodial sentence. This section begins with a brief description of the regulations governing remand prisons. This is followed by a description of the Prison and Probation Service’s remand prison operations. Finally, the section contains a description of certain fundamental rights that an inmate has, such as the right to associate with other inmates during the day and in which situations this right can be limited. 2.1 Preconditions to being held on remand A person can be held on remand if he or she is suspected with probable cause of a crime for which a custodial sentence exceeding one year is prescribed. For a remand request to be permitted by a court, there must – with regard to the nature of the crime, the suspect’s particular circumstances or any other relevant circumstances – be a risk that the suspect 1. avoids or in any other way evades legal proceedings or punishment, 2. destroys or tampers with evidence or in any other way complicates the investigation of the case, or 3. continues their criminal activities. Furthermore, there is a provision regarding being held on remand for more serious crimes. The provision states that a person must be held on remand if he or she is suspected on probable cause of a crime for which no lesser punish- ment than a custodial sentence of two years is prescribed. However, the suspect should not be held on remand if it is obvious that the requirements for being held on remand are lacking (the two-year rule). In considering a remand request, a court must additionally determine that the reasons for holding a person on remand outweigh the intrusion the measure entails for the suspect or for any other opposing interest. If this is not the case, a request for remand must not be permitted by a court. Nor may remand be imposed if it can be presumed the suspect will only be sentenced to a fine (chap. 24 § 1 RB). It is also possible to hold a suspect on remand – regardless of the crime – if he or she does not wish to be identified or if the suspect is not resident in Sweden and there is a risk of flight. Furthermore, it is possible in certain cases to hold a person on remand who is suspected on reasonable grounds of a crime (chap. 24, §§ 2 and 3 RB). When considering a request for remand, a court must also take into account, inter alia, the suspect’s age and state of health. If, with regard to old age for example, there is a risk that remand prison would result in serious harm to the suspect, remand is then only appropriate if it is clear that satisfactory surveillance or monitoring of the suspect outside of a remand prison cannot be arranged. The same applies to a woman who has given birth so soon before a request for remand that remand may then risk causing serious harm to the child (chap. 24, § 4 RB). A suspect under the age of 18 can only be held on remand on special grounds (§ 23 LUL). – 16 –