Two years post Day X in Leipzig: An Innocent Remains Imprisoned
** street riot, police kettle, civil unrest, Leipzig, Germany, June 2023
An unprecedented police kettle ripped through Leipzig, Germany, reminiscent of a bygone era in the Federal Republic. On June 3, 2023, a staggering 1,324 citizens found themselves encircled by law enforcement on Heinrich-Schütz-Platz, held for up to eleven unrelenting hours. They had gathered to voice their anger over the restriction of the freedom of assembly, due to the controversial Dresden verdict against anti-fascist activist Lina E., leading to a ban on a subsequent demonstration due to feared violence. Incidents of violence provided the police with justification to contain the protest on Schütz-Platz, subjecting the protesters to hours of torment. They suffered without access to food, water, and were forced to relieve themselves in the bushes.
Following the chaotic event, a wave of criminal proceedings ensued: charges of disturbing the peace, dangerous bodily injury, resisting law enforcement, assault, insults, and arson. A total of 1,537 proceedings were initiated. Two years later, the vast majority of charges have been deemed unfounded. 861, roughly two-thirds of the total, have been dismissed. Saxony's Interior Minister Armin Schuster (CDU) confirmed this in response to a request from the Left Party's Jule Nagel. The statement read that in most cases, "no offense, illegality, or guilt could be established," with some behaviors not constituting a criminal offense, and in at least two cases, the proceedings were dismissed because the individual involved was still a minor. Among those encircled were countless minors, who were denied any contact with their parents.
445 proceedings remain under investigation by the police or are pending with the public prosecutor's office, according to the ministry. Nagel expects "a large number of dismissals." Fine-heavy fines have been requested in some cases, while an indictment to a criminal, jury, or juvenile court has been raised in only 19 cases, resulting in a "juristically seen, extremely meager" balance between the public prosecutor's office and the special investigation group set up by the police. This confirms the impression of many observers that the police, numbering 3,000 officers that day, displayed arbitrary and disproportionately harsh behavior against a large number of innocent people.
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"Juristically seen, the balance of the public prosecutor's office and the investigation group of the police is extremely meager."
-- Left Party MP
One of the most glaring examples of this is the case of "Benni." A 25-year-old activist, known as "Benni," faced accusations of attempted murder and 18 counts of attempted bodily harm, after allegedly throwing two Molotov cocktails at police officers while masked and dressed in dark clothing. He remained in custody since January 2024 for half a year. Six months later, however, the warrant was lifted by the regional court, due to insufficient evidence. In August 2024, the court then dismissed most of the charges because "Benni" could not be positively identified as the person who threw the Molotov cocktails. An appeal by the public prosecutor's office was rejected by the higher regional court. Now, only the charge of disturbing the peace remains, to be tried at the local court.
As of now, no publicly available information has surfaced regarding an ongoing legal case related to the police kettle incident in Leipzig, Germany, on June 3, 2023, or any details regarding a person referred to as "Benni" in relation to such an incident.
In the aftermath of the police kettle in Leipzig, Germany, on June 3, 2023, there seems to be a disproportionate focus on individual cases such as the one labeled as "Benni," who faced allegations of attempted murder and bodily harm. This case reveals a discrepancy in the balance between the public prosecutor's office and the police investigation group, as pointed out by the Left Party MP. However, as of now, there appears to be no ongoing legal case available pertaining to the police kettle incident or any connection between it and "Benni." This situation falls under the umbrella of 'politics' and 'crime-and-justice,' with also relevant discussions around 'policy-and-legislation' and 'general-news' due to the controversy surrounding the restriction of freedom of assembly. The ongoing investigations into the Leipzig incident and the future trials may contribute to 'war-and-conflicts' if the tensions escalate further.
