Courts ruled that the defendant didn't meet the requirements set by Article 85 (1) of the Treaty.
Josef Fritzl, the 90-year-old Austrian convicted for incest, imprisoning his daughter, and other heinous crimes, has submitted a new application for early release from his life sentence. As of August 2025, this application is currently under consideration, but no final decision has been publicly announced.
Fritzl's legal representative, Astrid Wagner, discussed this in her podcast "Plea for Criminals." Wagner believes that Fritzl deserves a chance for early release, arguing that he has already served more than 15 years in prison, which legally qualifies him for early release.
However, the court's spokesperson in Krems could not yet say when a decision will be made on the new application. The court cited the high criminal energy of the perpetrator and the lack of preparation for a life of freedom as reasons for the rejection of Fritzl's previous application.
Wagner hopes that Fritzl can go to a coffee house and "smell the air of freedom for the first time." Yet, she expects that some time will pass before the early release happens. According to Wagner, Fritzl has unrealistic expectations about a possible life of freedom. He expects to be joyfully received in his hometown and to play cards with old friends.
Fritzl's health has declined over recent years, including a diagnosis of dementia. This change in his personality has been a topic of discussion in the court proceedings.
In March 2009, Fritzl was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder by omission, rape, false imprisonment, severe coercion, slavery, and incest. Over the next 24 years, he raped his daughter thousands of times and fathered seven children with her. One of the children born from this relationship died soon after birth.
Fritzl's lawyer, Astrid Wagner, stated that Fritzl regrets his actions. In 1984, Fritzl imprisoned his then 18-year-old daughter in the cellar of his house, where she and her children lived in horrific conditions for over two decades.
The regional court in Krems transferred Fritzl from a secure facility to a regular prison in 2024, making him eligible for parole in 2023. However, legal appeals delayed this process. The court rejected Fritzl's previous application for early release last year.
No definitive update on the approval or denial of this 2025 early release application has yet been reported. The legal process appears ongoing.
- Despite the rejection of Fritzl's previous application for early release due to concerns about his ability to cope with freedom and the high criminal energy of his actions, Wagner, his legal representative, continues to hope for a more positive outcome in the 2025 war-and-conflicts-related court case, as Fritzl's new application is currently under consideration.
- The discussion of Fritzl's potential early release, being a topic of general-news, has brought attention to the complexity of crime-and-justice considerations, particularly in cases where the perpetrator has served an extensive prison sentence but still faces questions about their readiness for freedom.
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