National Prosecution Authority medal

The National Prosecution Authority Medal is an award that the Prosecutor General can award to a person who has shown particular merit in service of National Prosecution Authority. It can also be granted to an authority or other corporation that has furthered the objectives of the prosecution service in a significant manner.

History of the National Prosecution Authority medal

The decision to have the National Prosecution Authority Medal minted was made on 31 March 2000. The date marked the centenary of the examination of Kaarlo Ignatius’s doctoral thesis Virallisen syyttäjistön kehittyminen, organisatsiooni ja syyteoikeus (The development, organisation and right to bring charges of the official prosecution service) on the modern prosecution service.

Ignatius was interested in reforming the judicial system and procedure. He advocated for a full-time prosecution service, the full independence of prosecutors from courts and judges, a purely accusatory procedure for criminal proceedings as well as an oral and direct procedure for taking evidence – reforms which were all carried out under the heading of “fair trial” at the end of the 20th century. Ignatius’s goals were also realised in the reform of the Finnish Public Prosecution Service in 1996–1997 – nearly a hundred years after the examination of his dissertation.

Recipients of the National Prosecution Authority Medal

The medal is 80 mm in circumference, and three silver and 200 bronze medals have been minted. The first silver medal was given to the President of the Republic on 5 June 2001. The medal was announced on National Prosecution Authority Day on 28 September 2001. It has been awarded to:

  1. Deputy Prosecutor General Martti Jaatinen 28.9.2001
  2. Deputy Chancellor of Justice Jukka Pasanen 28.9.2001
  3. The family association Ignatius ry 5.12.2001
  4. Vaasa Court of Appeal 20.12.2001
  5. Leena Ignatius 10.6.2002
  6. The Kuntsi Foundation 2.12.2002
  7. Prosecutor General Matti Kuusimäki 25.1.2005
  8. National Police Commissioner Markku Salminen 30.11.2007
  9. The Republic of Estonia Prosecutor’s Office 14.11.2008
  10. Leading District Prosecutor Pekka Noronen 30.1.2009
  11. Deputy Prosecutor General Jorma Kalske 12.2.2010
  12. The Finnish Border Guard 26.11.2010
  13. Attorney-at-Law Markku Fredman 21.3.2014
  14. District Judge Mikko Jaatinen 21.3.2014
  15. State Prosecutor Christer Lundström 1.12.2017
  16. Leading District Prosecutor Jarmo Toivola 27.8.2018
  17. Leading District Prosecutor Heikki Poukka 28.3.2019
  18. Deputy Head of Office, District Prosecutor Eeva-Liisa Olkinuora 3.12.2021
  19. Ministerial Adviser Virpi Jalkanen 3.12.2021
  20. Prosecutor General Raija Toiviainen 3.12.2021
  21. LLM, trained on the bench, Harri Lindberg 8.11.2024

Kaarlo Ignatius

President of the Court of Appeal Kaarlo Yrjö Benedictus Ignatius (12.11.1869 – 13.1.1942) graduated as Master of Both Laws in 1893 and Licentiate and Doctor of Both Laws in 1900. He served as Assistant Judge of the Vyborg Court of Appeal and secretary of the Legal Affairs Committee and worked as an attorney. He studied and travelled widely in Europe on assignments from the government. Ignatius ended his career as President of the Vaasa Court of Appeal from 1923 to 1927. Ignatius produced a considerable body of work, including the classic study Onko rikosasioissa todistelun uudestaan tutkiminen ylemmässä oikeudessa vastedes sallittava? (Should the re-examination of evidence in criminal cases be allowed in the higher courts?, LM 1907 p. 105).

syyttäjälaitosmitali_netti

Caption: The National Prosecution Authority Medal designed by sculptor Erkki Kannosto bears the portrait of Kaarlo Ignatius. The years 1900 and 2000 represent his doctoral dissertation, which has stayed relevant for a hundred years. On the medal, the prosecutor is depicted as a knight protecting his fortress built from the provisions of the law – civil society. The idea is encapsulated in the Latin text Accusator pro summo bono publico – Prosecutor for all public good.