justice
After the death drive from Berlin’s Ku’damm, the process begins
At the beginning of June 2022, the police and emergency services will secure the area after the death drive on Kurfürstendamm. photo
© Fabian Sommer/dpa
The area between the Memorial Church and the luxury department store KaDeWe in Berlin becomes the scene of a terrible scene. A car crashes into groups of pedestrians. Now comes the process.
Almost exactly eight months to the day after the death drive on Berlin’s Ku’damm, the trial against the alleged driver begins today. The indictment accuses the 29-year-old of murder and attempted murder and dangerous bodily harm.
On June 8, 2022, he is said to have intentionally driven a car into pedestrian groups on Kurfürstendamm (Ku’damm) and Tauentzienstrasse. He was aware that there could be fatalities. According to the indictment, he accepted this with approval.
Accused housed in a correctional hospital
A school class from northern Hesse was particularly affected: the 51-year-old teacher of the 10th grade at the Kaulbach School in Bad Arolsen died. A colleague and eleven students were injured, some critically. A 14-year-old who was visiting Berlin was also one of those affected. In addition, a 32-year-old, who was seven months pregnant, and two 29- and 31-year-old men standing in front of a snack bar were seriously injured.
The accused German-Armenian has been housed in a correctional hospital since the death trip. According to the public prosecutor’s office, a preliminary psychiatric report suggests that the 29-year-old is not guilty. In a so-called security procedure, the authority is seeking accommodation in a psychiatric hospital. Otherwise, it is to be feared that he would commit further dangerous crimes without treatment, according to the public prosecutor.
“The process is now also about protecting the victims as much as possible”
For defense attorney Mark Höfler, there is no question that his client was innocent on the day of the crime. He was ill as a young man and had no access to the tragic events of that June day. “But it is important to him and his family to make it clear how sorry they are for this terrible event,” emphasized the defender in advance. In the process before the Berlin district court, it is now also about protecting the victims as much as possible, said Höfler.
According to the court, eleven victims are also involved as joint plaintiffs. For the first day of the hearing, however, the competent 22nd criminal chamber had not yet invited any witnesses, said a spokeswoman. So far, the court has initially planned twelve days of hearings until April 21.
The students from Hesse have meanwhile graduated and left school. A spokeswoman for the Waldeck-Frankenberg district said that she, her parents and the school were still connected in a chat group.