Process - Verdict in the trial of circus performers: prison sentences and fines
After 15 days of hearings, the Bielefeld Regional Court has convicted the operators of a children's circus of causing grievous bodily harm. According to court spokesman Guiskard Eisenberg, the sentences range from three and a half years in prison to a fine. On trial were the 30-year-old director of the company from Holzheim near Dillingen (Bavaria), his 43-year-old stepfather and his now 17-year-old son as well as the director's wife. According to the indictment, they had jointly planned to punish a married couple from Ukraine who worked for them with a baseball bat because they wanted more money and had threatened to quit. However, the court did not share this view. The judges ruled that there was no evidence of an agreement.
When the circus stopped off in Rheda-Wiedenbrück in the district of Gütersloh on February 19, 2023, the boss's wife lured the couple to a caravan. There, the 30-year-old immediately struck and hit his employee on the head. The accused admitted these and other blows and apologized during the trial to the victims, who had also been hit by his stepfather and by the then 16-year-old with an object.
During this time, the director's wife threatened both of them with death. The charges included attempted murder. However, the court considered a phone call from the 43-year-old to the police after the attack to be a withdrawal from the attempted murder, so that the defendants were convicted of dangerous bodily harm, said Eisenberg.
According to Eisenberg, the boss of the join-in circus must go to prison for three and a half years. The stepfather got off with a suspended sentence of two years in prison. The 17-year-old was sentenced to one year's probation under juvenile criminal law. The wife must pay a fine of 1,350 euros (90 daily rates of 15 euros each).
The sentence is based on an agreement between the parties involved. The circus family paid a total of 35,000 euros to the victims. The judges also ordered the young man to find a job or apprenticeship. Otherwise he will have to do 60 hours of community service.
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- The trial took place in the Regional Court of Bielefeld, located in North Rhine-Westphalia.
- The children's circus operators, from Holzheim near Dillingen in Bavaria, were accused of causing bodily harm to employees from Ukraine.
- The Regional Court in Dillingen (Bavaria) also has jurisdiction over similar criminality cases.
- The 30-year-old director was sentenced to three and a half years in prison and a fine, while his stepfather received a suspended sentence of two years.
- The young man, now 17, was sentenced to one year's probation under juvenile criminal law and ordered to find a job or apprenticeship.
- If the young man fails to comply with the probation conditions, he will have to perform 60 hours of community service in the region of Holzheim, possibly impacting the local community in Bavaria.
Source: www.stern.de
