What happens next?
Appointment for giving a statement
After you have pressed charges for the offence you get an appointment for giving a statement to police. The police call you to find a time and place for you to give your statement. How soon you will be able to go in to give a statement after pressing charges varies but it can be around three weeks. Sometimes the statement is taken in the Children’s House (Barnahús), an agency that supports children who have experienced abuse.
Legal rights protector (ice. réttargæslumaður)
You and your family have the right to the services of a legal rights protector (réttargæslumaður) for free. You and your family can choose a legal rights protector when you go press charges at the police station if you have not gotten one assigned through the emergency room. You can also be assigned a legal rights protector if you want. Legal rights protectors usually meet their clients and go over the main points with them before they go in to give a statement. Your legal rights protector is also with you when you give the statement.
Case number
When the case has been created in the police system and you have been given an appointment to make a statement, the case is assigned a number. That number is sent to your parents or guardians by email. You can use that number when you ask about the status of the case in the police system.
Police information portal
The Police Commissioner of the Reykjavík Metropolitan Police has the information portal mitt.logregla.is. You can also find your case number on the section of that website called Mínar síður. This information portal is currently only accessible to sexual abuse survivors in the capital area but authorities are working to provide country-wide access.
The perpetrator knows about the charges
The perpetrator also has to be called in to give a statement to the police. When the police call in the perpetrator to give a statement, that is the first time they are informed that charges have been pressed for the offence.
Information on when the perpetrator has been called in to give a statement
If you want to know that the perpetrator has been called in to give a statement, you should make that request at the reception for sexual offences. Efforts are made to ensure that perpetrators and victims do not run into each other when they come in to give statements.