Trial for incitement to hatred - Racist remarks: Prospective policewoman sentenced
A trainee police officer, a 35-year-old woman, is supposed to pay a fine of 8,400 Euro for racist remarks. The Amtsgericht Tiergarten found her guilty of insult and ethnic insult in two cases. She addressed a colleague, a person of color, during police training sessions at the Berlin Police Academy, ordering him to "sit down". A month later, she insulted him as "asocial" and told him to learn German. Lastly, she made monkey gestures towards the 32-year-old man. The presiding judge stated that the gestures were "racism and nothing else."
The proceedings involved three alleged incidents between July and August 2023, according to the prosecution. The 35-year-old allegedly disparaged a specific population group, which could undermine trust in the rule of law. The prosecutor stated in his plea that he saw no "established racist" in the defendant but that she must take responsibility for racist remarks. "These were clearly intended to discredit the man," he added.
Defendant: "Racism is completely foreign to me"
The defendant, who is now a probationary police officer, denied the allegations. "Racism is completely foreign to me," she declared. She claimed that she had been bullied by her peers. The 32-year-old man allegedly had "something hanging on him." The gesture she made in response, she felt, had been misinterpreted by the man. It was just a "chicken gesture," she insisted.
The 32-year-old man filed a complaint against the woman after conversations at the Police Academy. "I felt racially insulted by monkey gestures," the current police officer testified in court. There had been no problems between him and the woman for over a year. He couldn't explain why tensions arose then. Another former classmate testified that he had seen the woman make monkey gestures towards the 32-year-old man. She had moved her fists towards her shoulders and mimicked monkey movements.
The court followed the prosecutor's request and imposed a fine of 8,400 Euro, with 120 installments of 70 Euro each. The defense lawyer had argued for acquittal. In the class, there had been a misogynistic atmosphere - "it degenerated into mobbing," the lawyer said. He considered the accusations to be "fabricated."
If the judgment becomes final, the probationary police officer will likely face significant professional consequences, the judgment continued. This was taken into account in the suspended sentence. The probationary police officer may be dismissed from service in the event of a final conviction. It remains unclear whether the woman will appeal the judgment.
- The verdict was handed down at the Tiergarten Local Court in Berlin, where the 35-year-old woman was found guilty of extremism, specifically incitement to hatred.
- The public prosecutor's office in Berlin pressed charges against the woman for her racist remarks during police training sessions at the Police Academy.
- The Police Academy, located in Berlin, was the setting for three alleged incidents of racial discrimination, according to the prosecution.
- The judge at the Tiergarten Local Court noted that the woman's monkey gestures were an example of racism and a clear attempt at incitement to hatred.
- The Justi (Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection in Berlin) will monitor any further developments in the case, given the serious nature of the woman's crimes against the 32-year-old police officer.
