From BZ/dpa
The Last Generation in Berlin wants to intensify their protest with new weeks of action. Road blockades have been announced again. This has been a challenge for the police and judiciary for months.
The protest by climate stickers in Berlin has now led to 2,860 proceedings by the public prosecutor’s office (as of September 15th). An authority spokesman told the German Press Agency on request.
The majority of the cases involve actions by the Last Generation group: the public prosecutor’s office has brought 2,458 cases to the table so far, according to 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.
Two climate gluers went to prison
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.
As a rule, the climate gluers 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.
Accelerated procedures are often not approved
In order to bring the cases against the climate gluers 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 so far been rejected 30 times.
Criminal proceedings in which the evidence is uncomplicated and the accused have confessed are suitable for accelerated proceedings. Among other things, simplified rules for taking evidence apply.