Administration of Justice

Ministry of Justice
www.om.fi/

As a government department, the Ministry of Justice "draws guidelines for legal policy, develops statute policy, and directs its purview." An overview of the legal system (courts, prosecution, legal aid, enforcement) and an outline of the new constitution is provided.

Corrections

Prison Service of Finland
www.vankeinhoito.fi/14994.htm

The Prison Service in Finland "enforces prison sentences and fine conversion sentences passed by the courts and takes care of the enforcement of remand imprisonment."  The website includes information on the organization of the agency, recent news releases relating to the Prison Service, as well as statistics and international treaties affecting the Finnish penal system.  In Finnish and English.

Probation Service of Finland
www.kriminaalihuolto.fi/16027.htm

The Probation Service is in charge of the enforcement of community sanctions and other activities connected to community sanctions and other non-custodial punishments.  The website includes general information on the organization and mission of the agency.  In Finnish and English.

Crime Prevention

National Council for Crime Prevention 
www.rikoksentorjunta.fi/6749.htm

The National Council for Crime Prevention, established by the Ministry of Justice, seeks to decrease the harm caused by crime and to increase security by focusing on the implementation of the National Crime Prevention Program.

Domestic Violence

Violence Against Women in Finland - 2006 
www.optula.om.fi/uploads/ghfj8w76dgibw_1.pdf

This report draws on a nationally representative victimization survey of Finnish women. It contains information about the prevalence, patterns and trends of violence committed by men against women. There are also separate chapters fear of violence and how victims have sought and received help from different agencies. This links to a summary in English.

Drugs & Alcohol

European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) - Country Overview 
www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/country-overviews/fi

The EMCDDA country overview provides a structured synopsis of the trends and characteristics of national drug problems. It consists of a summary of the national drug situation, key statistics at a glance and a barometer showing the drug use prevalence position of Finland.

Law & the Courts

Criminal Sanctions Agency
www.rikosseuraamus.fi/16019.htm

"The goal of the administrative branch of penal sanctions is to take care of security in society by maintaining a legal and safe system of enforcement of sanctions. The aim is also to reduce recidivism and try to break off social exclusion which is contributing to crime."  This website provides annual reports and statistics concerning the Criminal Sanctions Agency.

Finnish Courts
www.oikeus.fi/8854.htm

"This website contain general information on the activities of the Finnish courts."

Legal System - Finland
www.om.fi/711.htm

This site provies an English-language publication on Finland's legal system. The structure of the criminal justice system, its components, and its history are explained. This publication also includes links to relevant sites for associated bodies and official departments. This site utilizes frames.

National Research Institute of Legal Policy
www.om.fi/optula/2664.htm

The Institute "conducts impartial research on legal policy, publishes related reports and follows the development of Finnish and international legal policy research." The Institute has two publication series--Research Reports and Research Communications-- summaries are available online.

Oikeuslaitos - Prosecutors
www.oikeus.fi/8853.htm

This website offers information as to the role and responsibilities of the prosecutor in the Finnish judicial system. Also available are prosecutor links and prosecutor webpages.

Supreme Court
www.kko.fi/27080.htm

The home page of the FInnish Supreme court has information as to it's form and function, as well as links to precedents and proceedings. In English and Finnish.

Police & Law Enforcement

The Police of Finland
www.poliisi.fi/

Provides detailed statistics of recorded crimes broken down by crime type, in addition to a general overview of the duties and organization of the Finnish police.

Research and Statistics

Criminal Sanctions Agency of Finland
www.rikosseuraamus.fi/16927.htm

This site contains publications and research on prison administration in Finland.  In addition, annual reports on the Prison and Probation Services are available.  In Finnish and English.

Finnish Law on the Internet
www.nyulawglobal.org/globalex/Finland.htm

This site contains diverse information on Finnish law. Included here are links to the Constitution, sources of law, government information and parliament information.

Scandinavian Research Council for Criminology
www.nsfk.org/

This is a grant-awarding organization. The website includes a Nordic criminology bibliography.

Statistics Finland
www.stat.fi/index_en.html

Crime statistics are available.