The protest by climate demonstrators in Berlin has now led to 2,860 proceedings (as of September 15) by the public prosecutor’s office. An authority spokesman told the German Press Agency on request. The majority of cases involve actions by the climate protection group Last Generation.
The public prosecutor’s office has so far brought 2,458 cases to the table, said the spokesman. The remaining cases (402) are directed against members of the Extinction Rebellion organization. Further proceedings are now likely to be brought before the judiciary: The Last Generation has announced road blockades again for the coming days.
According to the public prosecutor’s office, there are now 74 legally binding judgments against members of the protest group. The Tiergarten District Court has made a total of 143 judgments so far, and in two cases the accused were acquitted. A prison sentence was imposed in two cases.
Penalties and charges
As a rule, the climate activists were sentenced to fines, mostly for coercion and resistance to law enforcement officers. If an objection is lodged against the penalty orders initially issued, an oral hearing will take place before the Tiergarten District Court. This has been the case regularly for several months.
According to the spokesman, the public prosecutor’s office has so far brought charges in 87 cases. However, she usually requests that the offenses be punished through a penalty order, i.e. without an oral hearing. So far, this has happened in 848 cases among members of the last generation, it said.
The allegations are often directed against the same person. Then several procedures are combined. According to the public prosecutor’s office, this has happened in 820 cases so far in the Last Generation case.
Expedited procedures
In order to bring the cases against the climate demonstrators to court more quickly, the public prosecutor’s office began applying for accelerated proceedings in the summer. The Tiergarten District Court created the organizational requirements for this in June and adjusted its business distribution plan.
According to its own information, the public prosecutor’s office has so far applied for accelerated proceedings in 62 cases – but this has been rejected 30 times.
Criminal proceedings in which the evidence is uncomplicated and the accused have confessed are suitable for an accelerated procedure. Among other things, simplified rules for taking evidence apply.
