The crime, disobedience to the authorities, for which Greta Thunberg was convicted has a penalty scale of a maximum of six months in prison.
For those who have been unpunished in the past, the standard penalty is a fine.
A minor crime
If, on the other hand, a person is sentenced for the same crime several times, it can affect the penalty scale, according to Mathias Larsson, senior prosecutor at the Southern Scania Prosecutor’s Chamber.
“The most common thing is that you are sentenced to a day’s fine because it is considered a minor crime, but you can also commit this crime so many times that it is perceived as obvious disobedience,” he says, and continues by comparing it to petty theft:
— It is also considered a minor crime. It takes a lot before you get jail. If, on the other hand, you talk about a notorious shoplifter who is prosecuted for many cases, where each crime carries a 50-day fine, you can end up in prison.
Carried away by police
Greta Thunberg stated immediately after the hearing in Malmö District Court that the verdict does not deter her from continuing to participate in climate actions. Just a few hours later, she participated in a climate campaign at the oil port in Malmö.
The police have drawn up six reports of disobedience to law enforcement in connection with the action. It is unclear if Greta Thunberg is one of the people reported. However, the action ended with the police carrying her away from the scene.
Mathias Larsson does not want to comment on Greta Thunberg’s case specifically and emphasizes that the question of punishment always depends on the circumstances.
– It is very difficult to say in advance, but if you relapse into the same type of crime several times, it can have an impact on the punishment scale. If prison is included in the punishment scale, it is also not impossible to be sentenced to prison, he says.