The Federal Court of Justice (BGH) has acquitted two prison officers of the charge of negligent homicide. They had granted detention relief to a prisoner, who had then caused a fatal accident while escaping as a ghost driver while fleeing the police and was subsequently convicted as a murderer.
The district court of Limburg in Hesse had sentenced the two senior prison officials to nine months probation. Both defense and the Federal Prosecutor's Office had demanded the repeal of the judgments.
The official and the official acted according to conviction of the 2nd Criminal Senate not careful, it is said in a statement. They would have considered all relevant aspects and would not have exceeded their judgment.
Multiple convictions
The Presiding Judge underlined the right to resocialisation based on the Basic Law, which also includes detention facilities. Negligible risks would have to be accepted. Although the prisoner had been convicted several times for driving without a driver's license, it had not been foreseen that such a fatal act would occur while fleeing a police check.
The freediver was in early 2015 with a stolen license plate on his car and without a license on the road when he wanted to stop a patrol. Then the man turned and turned in the wrong direction on the national road 49 near Limburg. There he raced against the small car of a 21-year-olds. The woman died in the hospital.
