Court sentences 15-year-old murderer to maximum penalty
A 15-year-old and his brother encounter a homeless man in Darmstadt. After an initial police intervention, the teenager relaxes and kills the homeless man. The court goes beyond the prosecutor's demand and imposes the maximum sentence.
The Higher Regional Court in Darmstadt, Hesse, has sentenced a 15-year-old to ten years in a youth detention center for murdering a homeless man. He received the maximum sentence possible under German law in juvenile proceedings, as a court spokesperson explained. The defendant was also found guilty of robbery and grievous bodily harm. His 18-year-old brother was warned by the court for grievous bodily harm and must perform community service.
The court found it proven that the two brothers, in November in Darmstadt, drank alcohol together and decided to rob the homeless man on the Luisenplatz. They stole his wallets first. The police intervened for the first time at this point.
A surveillance camera showed how the 15-year-old, in a fit of rage, brutally attacked his victim and entered the fray after the police had withdrawn. He jumped on the homeless man multiple times as he lay on the ground. The man succumbed to his injuries just one day later.
With the judgment, the court went beyond the prosecutor's demand. The prosecutor had demanded nine years and ten months in youth detention for murder. The defense had demanded eight and a half years. The 18-year-old brother had originally been charged with robbery. This charge could not be confirmed in the trial, according to the court spokesperson.
The international community has expressed concern over the severe sentence imposed on the teenage murderer in Darmstadt, Germany. Regardless, the court's decision to enforce processes related to the case of 'murder and manslaughter' have been upheld, underscoring the seriousness of the crime committed.
