A West Styrian attacked people in the street for no reason, beat them to hospital, then boasted about their actions on the internet. In the first trial, the court ruled that the defendant had accepted the fact that his victims had died. Therefore, he must now answer not only for intentionally inflicting serious bodily harm, but also for attempted murder. The mentally ill patient denies any intention to kill. “I defended myself.”
One of his victims – a woman – had her lower jaw shattered three times, a man was first in a coma with life-threatening injuries and then spent months in hospital – these are just two excerpts from the list of beatings by a young Styrian against passers-by. At the first trial at the Graz Criminal Court in February, the lay judge decided that not only bodily injuries were involved, but also two attempted murders. The 36-year-old was tried again on Wednesday. But this time before a jury.
“reasonable and arbitrary”
“There were massive blows and targeted kicks against random victims,” prosecutor Anika Maierhofer explains in her plea. “For no reason and haphazardly.” But it is not a classic jury trial, it concerns the accommodation of the person concerned in an institution. “Because he committed the attempted murder and intentionally inflicted grievous bodily harm under the influence of mental illness.” And there is a risk that he will commit such serious acts again.
There was agreement between the prosecution and the defense about the illness. “But there’s no indication that my client wanted to kill anyone.” In addition, he does not understand why two attempted murder and three intentional grievous bodily harm were charged. “Because the procedure was always the same.”
“They were all innocent”
The 36-year-old himself, who is heavily sedated during the trial and appears nervous, explains to the jury (chaired by Raimund Frei) that he was only defending himself. “After a hundred times I just had to defend myself.” They would have laughed at him, hijacked him and looked at him stupidly. “But there was no situation where they had to defend themselves. They were all innocent,” the judge contradicts.
“Why did you still kick the victims to the ground after the blows?” the judge wants to know. “I’m not one to intervene,” said the 36-year-old. But if he did, it was only for self-defense. “But I don’t remember. I was just generally pessimistic.” Expert Manfred Walz confirms that the racket includes paranoid schizophrenia and a high level of risk and recommends admission.
Today, Wednesday, it is the turn of the witnesses. A jury decision is expected on Thursday.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
