The trial of the rampage in Trier is approaching the verdict: the first pleas will be held on Friday.
First to act was Attorney General Eric Samel. In his plea he called for life imprisonment for the accused and the particular severity of the guilt. In addition, the accused should be housed in a forensic psychiatric facility.
Prosecutor: The accused was clearly the driver of the car
According to Samel, there is no doubt that the accused was the driver of the vehicle for the entire duration of the journey based on witness statements. There is a wealth of evidence proving the journey.
The interrogation of the accused showed that the act was not spontaneous. The accused used his “car as a weapon” to “targetly hunt passers-by,” Samel said. The goal was “maximum destruction”: He used the entire width of the pedestrian zone to kill or injure as many people as possible with his SUV at high speed.
The victims “didn’t have a shred of a chance”. He caused immeasurable suffering.
In his plea, Chief Prosecutor Eric Samel called for life imprisonment for the accused and the particular severity of the guilt.
SWR
“It feels like something out of a bad horror movie.”
The victim’s lawyer is also demanding life imprisonment
A lawyer for the joint plaintiffs, who represents the bereaved and survivors, also demanded that the accused be sentenced to life imprisonment – with particular severity of guilt. “The accused should go where he belongs: in prison.” The man was no longer allowed to meet society, the lawyer said.
The prison sentence is extended if the guilt is particularly serious. A life sentence usually ends after 15 years.
Other joint plaintiffs will then hold their pleas, as will the two defense attorneys. There are a total of 15 joint plaintiffs in the process.
On December 1, 2020, five people died in a rampage in Trier. Many more are injured. An act that still causes horror today.
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Hundreds of witnesses were heard in the Trier district court
The trial against the 52-year-old man from Trier-Zewen has been going on since August last year. Hundreds of witnesses were heard, including many eyewitnesses to the rampage, police officers and acquaintances of the accused.
Expert: Accused reduced criminal responsibility
At the end of June, the psychiatric expert testified and described the accused as less criminally responsible. He suffers from paranoid schizophrenia. A bizarre delusion was found in the trained electrician.
Judgment in the amok trial probably in the summer
If the court follows the psychiatric expert’s verdict, the accused will first be placed in a psychiatric facility for criminals. A verdict in the trial is expected in mid-August.
The accused is said to have run over and killed five people in the Trier pedestrian zone in December 2020. Many more were injured.