Trial with baton for special investigating officers to start in January in ten municipalities
In January at the latest, ten Dutch municipalities will start a trial in which special investigating officers (BOAs) will be able to use a short baton when working in public areas. This pilot will be carried out for a period of one year. The experience gained and the evaluation of the pilot will serve as input for new regulations on the weapons and equipment of the special investigating officers.
The selected municipalities for participation in the pilot are Alkmaar, Amsterdam, Capelle aan den IJssel, Hoorn, Leeuwarden, Valkenburg aan de Geul, Velsen, Zandvoort, Zoetermeer and Zuid West Friesland.
In selecting locations for this pilot, it was decided to make it nation-wide, encompassing metropolitan areas, medium-sized and small municipalities and rural areas where special investigating officers are not (yet) able to use a short baton.
Minister Grapperhaus:
‘We ask a lot of our special investigating officers. They deserve our appreciation, but they also deserve to be provided with sufficient resources for their safety. With this pilot, we will be meeting a demand that has existed for a long time. This could increase the safety of special investigating officers, thanks to its possible preventive effect.’
It goes without saying that the participating special investigating officers must meet the required teaching and training standards. Before the pilot can actually begin to be implemented in the selected municipalities, the special investigating officers must start with the extra teaching and training with the short baton. The evaluation of the pilot will be carried out by the Research and Documentation Centre (WODC). A support team will also be monitoring the progress of the pilot during its course and act as a point of contact (for municipalities) wherever necessary.
The Ministry of Justice and Security is working on a bill to provide clear rules on the weapons and equipment of special investigating officers. The bill is expected to be presented to the Council of State for its opinion in mid-2021, after which it will be submitted to the House of Representatives.