Police affair: public prosecutors are investigating BaWü Minister Strobl

Created: 05/04/2022, 19:04

By: Andreas Schmid

Interior Minister under pressure?

Baden-Württemberg's Prime Minister Kretschmann (Greens, above) supports CDU Minister Strobl.

© Marijan Murat/dpa

Political turmoil in Baden-Württemberg: The public prosecutor's office is investigating CDU Interior Minister Thomas Strobl.

The opposition is demanding his resignation.

Stuttgart – Thomas Strobl wants to remain Minister of the Interior of Baden-Württemberg despite criticism.

On Wednesday (May 4th), the CDU politician told journalists in Stuttgart that he saw no reason to resign.

The SPD and FDP, in turn, see this completely differently.

Strobl is confronted with an affair about the unauthorized disclosure of court documents.

The public prosecutor's office in Stuttgart is investigating.

Thomas Strobl (CDU): Prosecutor determined

Strobl was relaxed on Wednesday.

He had previously admitted the facts himself: he had passed on a lawyer's letter to a journalist in an affair about allegations of sexual assault by a senior police officer.

The internal letter then reached the public.

Prosecutors now suspect Strobl of incitement under Section 353d of the Criminal Code, which prohibits the publication of an indictment or other official document of a criminal case before it has been discussed in public.

The penalty is a fine or imprisonment of up to one year.

The public prosecutor's office also opened an investigation against the journalists involved on suspicion of violating this paragraph.

§ 353d: Prohibited notifications about court hearings

Any person who ...

• 1. contrary to a statutory prohibition, makes public a statement about a court hearing at which the public was excluded, or about the content of an official document relating to the matter.

• 2. contrary to a statutory duty of confidentiality imposed by the court, discloses facts without authorization which he became aware of through a closed court hearing or through an official document relating to the matter, or

• 3. publicly communicates the wording of the indictment or other official documents of criminal proceedings, fine proceedings or disciplinary proceedings, in whole or in essential parts, before they have been discussed in public hearings or the proceedings have been concluded.

"Police affair" in Stuttgart: Strobl wanted to "avoid damage"

Strobl admitted at a special meeting of the interior committee on Wednesday that he had passed on the official letter from the lawyer of a police officer suspected of coercion to a journalist.

He was concerned with "avoiding damage to the state police," he said.

Strobl had initially stopped the public prosecutor's investigations into the question of how the letter had gotten to the public.

After the meeting of the interior committee, Strobl admitted to errors in the communication about investigations by the public prosecutor, but emphasized that "maximum clarification and maximum transparency" were "the most important things" to him.

Strobl has been interior minister in the green-black coalition of Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann (Greens) since 2016.

Baden-Württemberg: Opposition calls for resignation - Kretschmann strengthens Strobl

The opposition now accuses him of passing on official secrets, violating his duty of care and initially deceiving the public about the disclosure of the letter.

SPD and FDP demanded Strobl's resignation.

Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann backed his deputy.

Strobl credibly explained to him that there was no violation of the law and that he was concerned with creating transparency, the Greens politician said.

Strobl, who is married to the daughter of Bundestag President Wolfgang Schäuble, continues to have his full confidence.