Trial against Höcke: Prosecution demands suspended sentence - defense demands acquittal
Björn Hocke admitted using symbols of former Nazi organizations, Bernzen stated. The defense attorney also demanded that Hocke be barred from holding public offices for a period of two years and pay 10,000 Euro to a charitable organization, such as the Buchenwald Memorial.
Hocke is accused of using a banned slogan of the Nazi Storm Detachment (SA) at an AfD event in Gera in December, or encouraging the audience to complete the phrase "All for Germany."
According to the prosecution, Hocke acted intentionally. Hocke, who was already facing similar charges at the time, had "deliberately staged" his appearance in Gera to repeat the slogan again. "You have revived a frequently forgotten slogan," Bernzen told Hocke. The fact that Hocke only called out the first two words "All for" and the audience completed it with "Germany" is considered "accessory" by the prosecution.
However, Hocke's defense requested acquittal. They argued that their client had interrupted the slogan to avoid criminal liability. Furthermore, Hocke's lawyers reiterated their main argument that "All for Germany" was not a central slogan of the SA and had been used by representatives of various political factions since the 19th century.
Hocke also rejected the criminality of his statement in Halle. "I am innocent," he said. He had interrupted the slogan, he explained, "to avoid making a mistake and to prevent a new trial."
Hocke referred to his right to free speech and portrayed himself as a victim of political justice. He felt that the justice system was attempting to muzzle the opposition's freedom of expression and gag opposition politicians with a "gag order." "Yes, my subjective feeling is that they are trying to silence me," Hocke accused the justice system.
In a similar case, the Halle Regional Court sentenced the 52-year-old to a fine of 13,000 Euro in May for using the SA slogan "All for Germany" at an AfD campaign event in Merseburg. The judgment is not yet legally binding.
Hocke is the state and faction leader of his party in Thuringia and leads the AfD in the election campaign. In the polls for the state election, the AfD has been in the lead for months, with its advantage shrinking slightly in recent months. Hocke aims to bring the party into government and become Minister-President himself, but no other party is willing to work with the AfD.
- Benedikt Bernzen, the defense attorney, suggested that Björn Höcke should be prohibited from holding public offices for two years and pay a fine of 10,000 Euro to a charitable organization like the Buchenwald Concentration Camp Memorial.
- The public prosecutor's office accused Höcke of intentionally using a banned slogan of the Nazi Storm Detachment (SA) during an AfD event in Gera, encouraging the audience to complete the phrase "All for Germany."
- Höcke's defense attorney argued for acquittal, claiming that Höcke had interrupted the slogan to avoid criminal liability and that "All for Germany" was not a central slogan of the SA but had been used by various political factions since the 19th century.
- Höcke rejected the criminality of his statement in Halle and accused the justice system of attempting to silence the opposition's freedom of expression and gag opposition politicians with a "gag order."
- In a similar case, the Halle Regional Court sentenced another individual to a fine of 13,000 Euro for using the SA slogan "All for Germany" at an AfD campaign event in Merseburg, but the judgment is not yet legally binding.
- Despite the ongoing legal proceedings, Höcke continues to lead the AfD in the election campaign in Thuringia, where they have been in the lead for months, with their advantage shrinking slightly in recent months.
- The AfD's success in the polls has made Höcke's goal of bringing the party into government and becoming Minister-President himself a realistic possibility, but no other party is willing to work with the AfD.
- If not for the ongoing legal proceedings, Höcke's potential position as Minister-President after the Thuringia state election would have raised controversies due to his previous admissions of using symbols of former Nazi organizations.
- The Buchenwald Concentration Camp Memorial in Gera has expressed concerns over the use of Nazi symbols and slogans by Höcke and the AfD, as it is a site of great historical significance and aims to promote understanding and remembrance of the Holocaust.
