Chemnitz riots trial: new postponement and explosive details

Chemnitz riots trial: new postponement and explosive details

The trial surrounding the violent riots in Chemnitz, which took place in 2018 after the violent death of a German, is taking an unexpected turn. There are currently delays because a defendant from Lower Saxony simply overslept. As a result, the pleas from the public prosecutor and co-prosecution have now been postponed until August 27th. The verdict could also come down on this day, like that South Germans reported.

The trial has been running at the Chemnitz Regional Court since the beginning of May and concerns four young men from Saxony and Braunschweig, whose ages are between 17 and 20 years old. They are accused of breach of the peace and grievous bodily harm in eleven cases after they were part of a larger group that verbally and physically attacked the participants of a “Heart instead of agitation” demo on September 1, 2018. The riots were fueled by a funeral march by right-wing extremist groups such as AfD and Pegida MDR determines.

Background of the process

The fatal knife attack on a German-Cuban led to the riots in Chemnitz in 2018. The demonstrations and riots followed in a tense climate in which right-wing extremist groups were increasingly popular. The defendants' difficult situation was already discussed during the trials; Representatives of the juvenile justice system reported problems at school, alcohol consumption and previous crimes. What is pleasing, however, is that all three defendants present have now stabilized their lives and are partly working regular jobs.

Interestingly, the development of these cases points to a broader problem in German society. According to reports from the ZDF The willingness to use violence has increased in the right-wing extremist scene, especially among young people. In Brandenburg, masked attackers were recently observed attacking a self-managed housing project with firecrackers and incendiary devices, which illustrates the dangers of emerging right-wing extremism.

Current developments and outlook

Overall, there are several cases pending in connection with the Chemnitz events, including a third case against defendants from Freital and Erfurt, which is scheduled to begin in September. The investigations, which in some cases extended into 2021, were not only under a bad star because of the corona pandemic, but also due to the change in personnel in the youth chamber, which led to further delays. Of 142 investigations, 97 were closed, while around 100 were convicted, often resulting in fines or suspended sentences.

Important decisions are now on the agenda on August 27th. It remains to be seen whether the delays will influence the impression of the jurisprudence or whether the young people affected, who were still adolescents at the time of the crime, will ultimately be held responsible for their actions.