User:Festucalex/Draft:Trial of Lina E.

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Trial of Lina E.
CourtHigher Regional Court of Dresden

On May 31, 2023, a Dresden court found 28-year-old Lina E.[a] guilty of six acts of violence against neo-Nazi individuals, and sentenced her to five years and three months of imprisonment.[1] Three co-defendants (Lennart A., Philipp M.[b], and Jannis R.) were charged with her, and received shorter sentences.[1][3]

Attacks[edit]

Lina and her group were accused of carrying out six attacks against far-right targets in Saxony and Thuringia between 2018 and 2020. Lina was determined to the the head of the group, which the court ruled to be a "criminal organization".[3]

The violence included two attacks against an individual known as Leon R. Leon was attacked first in late 2019 at an Eisenach bar known to be frequented by neo-Nazis. Leon was beaten with hammers and batons, and was attacked again weeks later near his car.[1]

Another attack, which occurred in 2020, involved around 20 members of Lina's group. During this incident, six neo-Nazis were attacked during a ceremony commemorating the Dresden bombings, an event often celebrated by the German far-right. The attack resulted in several serious injuries due to beatings and baton attacks by the assailants.[2]

Trial[edit]

The trial of Lina E. lasted for almost 100 days. On May 31, 2023, the Higher Regional Court of Dresden reached a guilty verdict and sentenced the defendant to five years and three months in jail.[4] Upon the announcement of the verdict, spectators shouted slogans against the court, such as "[you are] friends of fascists!" (German: Faschofreunde!) and "Fuck class justice!" (German: Scheiß Klassenjustiz!).[4]

Following the verdict, Lina E. was released, pending appeal. A second decision to affirm or overturn the sentence is expected in around 18 months. Her passport has been confiscated to eliminate flight risk.[4]

Reactions[edit]

Germany's Minister of the Interior, Nancy Faeser, said that the government will act decisively against any left-wing violence following the verdict.[2]

Green Youth chairman Timon Dzienus questioned the verdict. He tweeted:

A completely exaggerated and questionable evidence-based process is being used with all severity against Lina E. and other leftists. What nonsense—that's why FreeLina![4]

This drew criticism from members of the right-wing CDU party.[4]

The far-right Alternative for Germany party welcomed the verdict, accusing Lina E. of terrorism, and called for a longer sentence for the defendants.[2]

Protests against the verdict were organized by left-wing groups in Berlin, Hamburg, Dresden, and other cities.[4] In response to a large protest dubbed "Day X" (German: Tag X), planned to take place on May 3, the city of Leipzig banned public gatherings.[2][3][4]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ In accordance with the German press code regarding anonymity of defendants, media outlets did not publish Lina's full name.[1]
  2. ^ Some sources have reported this defendant's name as Jonathan M.[2]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d "German left-wing extremist Lina E. found guilty". DW. May 30, 2023. Archived from the original on May 31, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e "German court hands student lengthy prison sentence for attacks on neo-Nazis". ABC News. May 31, 2023. Archived from the original on May 31, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c "Stadt Leipzig verbietet Solidaritätsdemonstration für Lina E." [City of Leipzig bans solidarity demonstration for Lina E.]. Die Zeit (in German). June 1, 2023. Archived from the original on June 2, 2023.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g "Urteil gegen Lina E.: Stadt Leipzig verbietet Solidaritäts-Demonstration" [Judgment against Lina E.: City of Leipzig bans solidarity demonstration]. Frankfurter Rundschau (in German). June 2, 2023. Archived from the original on June 2, 2023.

See also[edit]

Information gathered[edit]

English sources
German sources
German Wikipedia
Redirects
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