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Stephan Balliet and his defender Thomas Rutkowski
Photo: Ronny Hartmann / dpa
In the trial of the right-wing terrorist attack on the Halle synagogue, the defense requested that the proceedings be suspended or at least a three-week break.
The presiding judge of the Naumburg Higher Regional Court, Ursula Mertens, said after a preliminary assessment of the application, in her opinion, a suspension was out of the question.
However, she gave the accessory prosecution and the federal prosecutor's office the opportunity to respond to the request by November 16.
She also wants to consult with the other judges.
Previously, attorneys for the secondary prosecution had requested that the charges against Stephan Balliet be expanded to include another case of attempted murder.
It's about a man whom the assassin ran into on his escape.
The federal prosecutor had assessed this in the indictment as negligent bodily harm.
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However, the trial showed that the defendant drove his car to the dark-skinned man in order to kill him, said an attorney for private individuals.
In the opinion of the defense, this results in a new state of affairs for which it is not prepared.
Therefore the process should be suspended or interrupted.
On October 9, 2019, Balliet tried to storm the synagogue in Halle in order to cause a massacre there on Yom Kippur, the highest Jewish holiday.
After he did not get into the house of God, he shot a 40-year-old passer-by and shortly afterwards a 20-year-old in a kebab shop.
The 28-year-old confessed to the crimes and justified them with anti-Semitic, racist conspiracy theories.
The trial is running before the higher regional court in Naumburg, but takes place in Magdeburg due to lack of space.
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sen / dpa