// Netherlands · Right to be forgotten
Court upholds search results linking man to 2006 murder case despite completed sentence
Rechtbank Noord-Nederland ·
ECLI:NL:RBNNE:2019:5169
The case
The court denied a request to remove search results about a 2006 murder case. Although the applicant has served his prison sentence, his TBS treatment continues until 2021, making the public interest in access to information outweigh his privacy rights.
What the court considered
- 01The public interest in access to information about the applicant outweighs his privacy interest, given the severity of the crime committed (murder of an 8-year-old schoolchild)
- 02The applicant is still in forensic TBS treatment until 2021, making the information current and relevant to the public
- 03There is an ongoing public debate about TBS measures, unsupervised leave, and life sentences in which this case plays a part
- 04The applicant has insufficiently substantiated that he actually suffers serious harm in finding work or reintegrating into society
- 05The search results are accurate, complete, relevant and not excessive for a search query on the applicant's name
What this means in practice
Persons in forensic trajectories have limited prospects of having search results removed. Concrete damage must be substantiated properly with evidence. The time element alone (12+ years) is insufficient for approval in serious crimes. This ruling confirms that the right to be forgotten in serious crimes is applied very restrictively, particularly when forensic trajectories are still ongoing and there is current public debate on the subject.
Legal basis
- Artikel 17 AVG (recht op vergetelheid)
- Artikel 6 lid 1 sub f AVG (gerechtvaardigde belangen)
- Artikel 10 AVG (strafrechtelijke persoonsgegevens)
- Artikel 17 lid 3 sub a AVG (uitzondering voor vrijheid van meningsuiting)
- Artikel 21 AVG (recht van bezwaar)
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