Preclusion of covert video recording as evidence in criminal case
Supreme Court order 5 May 2021, HR-2021-966-A, (case no. 20-189058STR-HRET), criminal case, appeal against order.
A (Counsel Øystein Horntvedt) v. The Public Prosecution Authority (Counsel Lars Erik Alfheim)
Justices: Skoghøy, Noer, Bergsjø, Arntzen, Bergh
A woman who was indicted under section 351 of the Penal Code for having scratched up a car parked in a closed parking facility, had been filmed by mobile phone while she was allegedly scratching up the car. The owner of the car, who had also previously had her car scratched up, had placed the phone facing her own parking space and arranged for it to start recording upon movement. In a separate case concerning whether the recording could be used as evidence in the criminal case, the Supreme Court found after an oral hearing, like the previous instances, that the recording could be used as evidence, even if it had been obtained in an illegal or improper manner. It was assumed that the Court of Appeal had carried out a sufficiently broad assessment based on relevant criteria and based its ruling on a correct interpretation of the prohibition of evidence norm in civil cases in section 22-7 of the Dispute Act. It was not considered whether the recording was illegal under the Personal Data Act or the EU General Data Protection Regulation. The indicted woman's appeal against the Court of Appeal's order was dismissed.