Police (iceland)
The Police of Iceland ( Icelandic Lögreglan ) is the law enforcement agency for the entire territory of Iceland. The Icelandic Coast Guard is responsible for law enforcement and security in Icelandic territorial waters . Police matters in Iceland are the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice and are administered on its behalf by the Office of the National Police President (Ríkislögreglustjóri).
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|---|---|---|---|
| State level | Nationwide | ||
| Position of the authority | Law enforcement agency | ||
| Supervisory authority (s) | Ministry of Justice Represented by Minister of Justice Áslaug Arna Sigurbjörnsdóttir |
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| Consist | since 1972 as national police authority | ||
| Headquarters | Office of the National Police Commissioner Skúlagata 57, 101 Reykjavík |
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| management | Ríkislögreglustjóri currently: Sigríður Björk Guðjónsdóttir |
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| Employee | about 730 | ||
| Website | https://www.logreglan.is/ | ||
The motto of the Icelandic police is með lögum Skal land byggja ("The land is built on set"), a quote from the Njáls saga , which appears in a similar form in medieval Scandinavian law collections such as Frostathingslov .
history
Beginnings
The origins of the Icelandic police force date back to 1778. The first police officers are considered to be the night watchmen of Reykjavík armed with a morning star, whose primary task is to prevent the prisoners of Reykjavík prison from breaking into the inner city area.
In 1803, the first real police officers were hired in Reykjavík when Reykjavík became a free city ( Icelandic Kaupstaður). The first police chief was the then mayor Rasmus Frydensberg, who hired the former soldiers Ole Biørn and Vilhelm Nolte as the first police officers. It was not until shortly after 1891 that police officers were also employed in most of the rest of Iceland.
In the 20th century
In 1933 the Icelandic parliament Alþingi passed the Police Act, which provided for state participation in the financing of the police force. This came in response to threats from communist revolutionaries who wanted to seize decision-making power in Reykjavík City Council, and a large number of the police officers were injured. The law also empowered the Minister of Justice and Church Affairs to call reservists in critical situations.
In 1972, the command of law enforcement was transferred from the municipal police authorities to the newly created National Police Authority. In 1977 the State Criminal Police began its work under a special director. This agency took over the investigation into criminal activity, which previously came under the jurisdiction of the Reykjavík Criminal Court and the Chief of Police of the Capital Region.
In 1997, the Office of the National Police President was established and the State Criminal Police was disbanded. The Office of the National Police Commissioner reports to the Icelandic Ministry of Justice and is its executive body.
First lethal use of firearms
On December 2, 2013, for the first time in Iceland's recent history, a person died in an armed police operation. The police had responded to reports of a shotgun shootout in an apartment in Árbær, a suburb of Reykjavík. Originally, tear gas was used to overpower the gunman, a 59-year-old man, but it had no effect on him.
When an armed police force entered the apartment in question, two officers were injured by shotgun fire. An officer held a ballistic shield that was hit. The other officer was hit in the head but was wearing a hard hat. As a result, the police returned fire. The shooter was taken to the hospital where he died. State Police President Haraldur Johannessen immediately apologized to the man's family and called the incident "unprecedented". The shooter's motives were not immediately clear, although some neighbors reported that the shooter made threats to them. An investigation into the incident has been launched and the firearms involved on all sides have been confiscated. The officers involved were offered psychological and legal advice.
Official titles of the Icelandic Police
The ranking of the Icelandic police force is very similar to that of the Nordic countries Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark. German official titles cannot be transferred one to one here. For a better understanding, the German translation or the German equivalent is mentioned here. The Icelandic police officers are hierarchically structured in the following ranks:
| Icelandic official title | insignia | German name or equivalent | Personnel category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ríkislögreglustjóri |
 |
National Police Commissioner | Senior officials |
| Lögreglustjóri |
 |
Chief of Police | |
| Aðstoðarríkislögreglustjóri | Deputy to the National Police Commissioner | ||
| Aðstoðarlögreglustjóri |
 |
Deputy Chief of Police | |
| Yfirlögregluþjónn |
 |
Chief Police Director | Police officers |
| Aðstoðaryfirlögregluþjónn |
 |
Police Director | |
| Aðalvarðstjóri |
 |
First police chief inspector | |
| Lögreglufulltrúi | |||
| Varðstjóri |
 |
Police chief inspector | |
| Rannsóknarlögreglumaður | Commissioner candidate | ||
| Lögreglumaður |
 |
Police Chief Master | |
| Lögreglunemi |
 |
Police candidate | |
| Afleysingamaður í lögreglu | Temporary police officer | Temporary employees | |
| Héraðslögreglumaður | Temporary police support staff |
structure
The Minister of Justice is also the chief officer of the Icelandic police force. The National Police Commission is subordinate to both the Ministry of Justice and the Icelandic Foreign Ministry. The Police Commission commands the police forces of the 9 districts, the National Police College and the airport police at Keflavík Airport .
As of December 2018, the Icelandic Police employed around 730 people. With a population of 356,991, there was one police officer for every 489 inhabitants.
Police districts
The organization of the Icelandic police force has been divided into 9 districts ( Lögregluumdæmin ) since a major restructuring in 2014 and 2015 . The largest district is the capital region, which is responsible for the Reykjavík metropolitan area and the surrounding area, and thus for around 233,000 people.
These districts are:
equipment
uniform
The Icelandic police uniforms are black with traditional black and white markings as well as the Icelandic police star. The trousers worn by police patrolmen are made of fireproof material. The old, traditional service uniforms are still used for representative purposes.
Armament
Icelandic policemen usually only carry truncheons and pepper spray . Nevertheless, they are trained in the use of firearms and use them in certain situations. However, firearms are carried in some patrol cars, especially in more remote areas of the country. Usually this is reserved for the special task force, the Vikingasveitin .
The following firearms are used, among others:
vehicles
The Icelandic police vehicles are white with reflective markings in blue and red. On the long sides they bear the Icelandic police officer and the blue lettering Lögreglan . The rotating beacons are blue.
The National Police Commission owns all vehicles that are used in the individual police districts. The regional districts rent their vehicles from the national police commission for five years. They pay a mileage allowance to cover the costs of their operations. The special unit Vikingasveitin uses unmarked vehicles that have been equipped for tactical operations.
In 2012, a total of just over 300 police cars and motorcycles were in use in Iceland. These included the following vehicles:
| country | Manufacturer | Models |
|---|---|---|
 Germany
|
BMW | R1200RT |
| Mercedes Benz | sprinter | |
| Volkswagen | Transporter | |
 Japan
|
Nissan | Patrol |
| Toyota | Land Cruiser | |
| Subaru | Forester | |
| Yamaha | FJR 1300 | |
 South Korea
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Hyundai | Santa Fe |
 Czech Republic
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Škoda | Superb |
 Sweden
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Volvo | V70 |
 United States
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Chevrolet | Captiva |
| ford | Explorer |
Icelandic Police Special Forces
With the " Sérsveit ríkislögreglustjóra " (translated "Special Command of the National Police President", colloquially also called Víkingasveitin for "Viking Command"), founded in 1982, the security forces have a special unit that is up to 55 strong and also for military tasks within the framework of NATO - Operations abroad, including in the Yugoslav Wars of the 1990s, as well as the US-led Operation Enduring Freedom . It is essentially based on the Norwegian anti-terrorist unit Beredskapstroppen , with which joint exercises are also held in Norway and Iceland.
Networking
The Icelandic Police are members of the international police organizations Europol and Interpol . It also has its own international department ( Alþjóðadeild ), which is responsible for cooperation with other police authorities abroad. Since Iceland does not have an army , but is still a NATO member, the Víkingasveitin is also used in NATO missions abroad.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Hvar kemur fyrst fyrir orðatiltækið 'með lögum shall land byggja'? on visindavefur.is
- ↑ Iceland 2019 Crime & Safety Report. Retrieved July 29, 2020 .
- ↑ Iceland 2019 Crime & Safety Report. Retrieved July 29, 2020 .
- ↑ Umdæmin. November 24, 2014, accessed July 29, 2020 (Icelandic).
- ↑ Reglugerð um einkennisfatnað lögreglunnar. Retrieved August 12, 2020 (Icelandic).
- ↑ Gudmundur Gudjónsson (Ed.): Icelandic Police and Justice System: A short introduction. ( Memento from June 27, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) September 2005.
- ↑ Hvenær má lögreglan nota skotvopn? Retrieved August 12, 2020 (Icelandic).
- ↑ innanrikisraduneyti.is
- ↑ Reglugerð um einkenni and merki lögreglunnar. Retrieved August 12, 2020 (Icelandic).
- ^ The Office of the National Commissioner of Police: An Introduction. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. The National Commissioner of the Icelandic Police, October 2004, p. 27.
- ↑ mbl.is ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ mbl.is
- ↑ Alþjóðadeild. November 25, 2014, Retrieved July 29, 2020 (Icelandic).
