The trial has begun in Innsbruck against a father who is accused of drowning his son. The child had a rare genetic defect. Was the father unable to cope? Or did the six-year-old fall into the river by himself?
The defendant Florian A. sits in the middle of the room, the judge in front of him, the defense attorneys and the audience behind him. “It was like waking up from a dream in the night and not knowing: am I awake or am I still dreaming?” he says of the night that is the subject of this Innsbruck courtroom. When, that is his version, he came to after losing consciousness and saw the paramedics. If A. did not kill his son, which is what he is accused of, he is in a nightmare that has lasted almost 17 months. That is how long he has been in custody. “For 509 days,” he says. He is counting the days.