It is an unbelievable scandal that reveals a lot about the state of Germany’s courts. A total of six defendants were released from pre-trial detention in Frankfurt on the river Main – because no dates could be found for court proceedings!
Four of the six released are accused of trying to kill two people, causing them life-threatening injuries. Two others are accused of attempted manslaughter, bodily harm and aggravated robbery.
After almost twelve months, they now had to be released from pre-trial detention because the jury court chamber is overloaded.
With its decision of June 30, 2022, the 2nd Criminal Senate cancelled the arrest warrants of the Frankfurt District Court.
Because: The competent jury court chamber could not find any dates for the main proceedings against the accused five months after the indictment. It will not be possible in the future either, according to a press release of the Frankfurt Higher Regional Court. Since the suspects have already been in pre-trial detention for a year, the arrest warrant was lifted again. In such cases, time is of the essence – lawyers speak of the so-called ” requirement to expedite the proceedings”.
Hesse’s new Justice Minister Dr. Roman Poseck (52, CDU), who was once president of the Higher Regional Court himself: “A bad signal in our constitutional state”. Far too lenient terms for this legal scandal!
“Structural overload with numerous cases concerning detention, which can no longer be managed even with almost daily hearings,” the statement from the Higher Regional Court reads.
And further: “Defendants in pre-trial detention would not have to put up with a longer than procedurally adequate upholding of an arrest warrant because the state fails to fulfil its duty to constitutionally equip the courts.”
Four of the accused are alleged to have met the injured parties (25, 35) at the railway station in the Höchst district of Frankfurt at night after an argument on July 3, 2021, and to have beaten them with sticks before stabbing them with knives, causing life-threatening injuries.
Another released man is accused of attempted manslaughter with aggravated robbery, the other of attempted manslaughter with dangerous bodily harm.
The decisions that the arrest warrants were cancelled are not contestable.