WODC report: evaluation of the NRGD
In the Netherlands every five years a law is being evaluated by a special independent agency the WODC. At the request of the WODC, in 2020, the DSP-groep research agency investigated the effectiveness and fitness for purpose of the NRGD's performance. The report reveals that from a qualitative perspective, the NRGD delivers high quality concerning standards, assessment and registration.
According to the report, the NRGD thus makes an important contribution to the purpose of the Experts in Criminal Cases Act, of increasing the trust in the judiciary by making quality improvements in forensic consultancy.
Minister of Justice Grapperhaus: ‘The evaluation shows that the NRGD has managed to achieve a number of important objectives and ambitions. For instance, the Forensic Psychology field of expertise has been further developed, while the NRGD has also been successful in registering foreign experts. It also proved possible to extend the registration of experts in the register from four years to five years, while the assessment burden has become noticeably lower. In the period when the investigation took place, three fields of expertise were added to the register, including two minor ones. In addition, the standards and procedures in relation to certain fields of expertise were made stricter in the interim, while the NRGD was also involved in various quality improvement procedures in the professional field.
The evaluation showed that all of the parties questioned indicate that the NRGD system performes in an objective and independent manner. The parties questioned are also of the opinion that the standards used in the assessment test follow closely from state-of-the-art scientific insights, and that the members of the various assessment advisory committees have the proper expertise.’