Violent crimes make for 56% of cases referred for mediation

More than half of all criminal and civil cases referred to mediation were violent crimes, but there were great regional differences, said the National Institute of Health and Welfare (THL) in a press release on Tuesday.

Fifty-six per cent of all criminal and civil cases referred to mediation were violent crimes, such as robberies and assaults. The proportion of domestic violence was 16%. The percentage of violent crimes referred to mediation was over 10% higher than the year before.

The increase in the number of criminal and civil cases referred to mediation levelled off last year.

In 2019, a total of 15,811 criminal and civil cases that were referred to mediation. Of them, 15,215 were criminal cases and 596 were civil cases. The numbers fell slightly from the previous year, but the reform of the information system impairs the comparison.

The majority (89%) of the mediation initiatives were still made by the police and the second most common initiator was the prosecutor (10%).

“The police refer more and more violent crimes to mediation. Over 40% of the assaults investigated by the police were referred to mediation. Especially in violent crimes, the parties have needs that can best be addressed in participatory conflict resolution, which is similar to mediation,” said Henrik Elonheimo, Development Manager responsible for mediation activities at THL.

Regional differences in the proportion of violent crimes referred to mediation in all criminal and civil cases were considerable.

“Helsinki stood out clearly from the operating areas of the mediation offices. In Helsinki, seven out of ten criminal and civil cases referred to mediation were violent crimes. The proportion of violent crimes was the lowest in Satakunta and North Karelia,” Elonheimo added.