Excitement in Styria – 169 abnormal lawbreakers in nursing homes

Already in 2021, the ‘Steirekrone’ reported on the increasing number of people ‘with a forensic background’ housed in local nursing homes. “In our opinion, it is unacceptable that mentally abnormal lawbreakers are still housed in nursing homes in Styria, next to honest elderly people,” said Mario Kunasek, president of the FPÖ club. At the request of his party, the Styrian Public Health Council Karlheinz Kornhäusl (ÖVP) has now collected current figures.

The numbers remain at a high level
In 2023, 169 mentally abnormal lawbreakers were housed in nursing homes in Styria, 63 of them in the Deutschlandsberg district alone. Although the number has decreased slightly compared to 2022 (185), it remains at a high level. And only 19 of the people cared for last year were over 75 years old.

“The fact is that these people are usually people without the proper level of care, and many of them are also under 50 years old. This group of people actually does not belong in a retirement home,” says Kunasek.

“There is a need for independent care”
State Health Council Karlheinz Kornhäusl is also aware of the problem: “The figures show that there is a need for independent care for mentally ill offenders. And that certainly does not only have consequences for Styria,” he says, placing special responsibility on the responsible Minister of Justice Alma Zadic of the Greens. “There needs to be a clear federal plan. The Minister of Justice must investigate how enforcement measures should deal with the increasing number of older criminals. It may be necessary to expand forensic centers with nursing facilities. In any case, the status quo is more than unsatisfactory.”