Abstract
This chapter examines how the Covid-19 pandemics impacted crime and the criminal justice system in Portugal. After describing how the pandemics affected the country and the measures issued to address it, official crime statistics show a crime drop in 2020 and particularly during lockdown periods, although disobedience, cybercrimes, and domestic violence showed different trends. The chapter also provides data about how the Portuguese police forces, criminal courts, and prisons were called upon to respond to the pandemics. Police forces were also called to enforce stay-at-home measures by patrolling the public space. However, the pandemics implied a decline in many of more traditional policing activities, which is correlated with the reported crime drop. Criminal courts were also impacted by the pandemics by suspending non-urgent activities. In prisons, an expressive number of inmates were released, and the daily routines of staff and inmates were adapted to harsh sanitary measures.
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Notes
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- 2.
- 3.
All data retrieved from https://covid19.min-saude.pt/. Accessed 30 June 2021
- 4.
All information regarding rules and regulations enacted by the Portuguese government in response to the pandemics were obtained from the official website https://dre.pt/legislacao-COVID-19-por-data-de-publicacao. Accessed 30 June 2021
- 5.
https://estatisticas.justica.gov.pt/sites/siej/en-us/pages/default.aspx. Accessed 30 June 2021
- 6.
Police forces responsible for recording crimes include Guarda Nacional Republicana, Polícia de Segurança Pública, Polícia Judiciária, Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras, Polícia Marítima, Autoridade de Segurança Alimentar e Económica, Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira, and Polícia Judiciária Militar.
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https://estatisticas.justica.gov.pt/sites/siej/pt-pt/Paginas/Duracao-media-de-processos.aspx. Accessed 29 June 2021
- 9.
In Portugal, prisons are managed by the General Directorate of Probation and Prisons (Direção-Geral de Reinserção e Serviços Prisionais – DGRSP).
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Acknowledgements
The authors wish to thank Paulo Moimenta de Carvalho, vice-director of DGRSP, for his support to the completion of this chapter.
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Faria, R., Quintas, J., Sousa, P. (2022). How Did the Pandemics Shape Crime and Justice in Portugal?. In: Siegel, D., Dobryninas, A., Becucci, S. (eds) Covid-19, Society and Crime in Europe. Studies of Organized Crime, vol 21. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13562-0_10
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