Höcke is said to have finished a lecture at a campaign event in Merseburg in May 2021 with the formula “Everything for our homeland, everything for Saxony-Anhalt, everything for Germany”, knowing that the last part of this formula was forbidden slogan of the Sturmabteilung (SA) of the NSDAP.
In an admission to this accusation, Höcke “denied the criminal relevance of his statement.”
However, contrary to what the prosecution requested, the proceedings should not take place in the regional court, but in the Merseburg district court. The court justified this by saying that the jurisdiction of the regional court could not be assumed either because of the expectation of punishment or because of the particular importance of the case.
Compared to similar crimes, the present case stands out from the mass of average cases in a special way, neither because of the extent of the violation of the law nor because of the effects of the crime, it was said. The public prosecutor’s office can appeal against the decision, but for Höcke it is unappealable.