Overview
- The Amtsgericht Mönchengladbach cleared the priest after a hearing on November 21, finding the evidence insufficient for a conviction.
- Both the prosecutor and the defense requested an acquittal, and Judge Alina Linssen agreed after reviewing the testimony.
- Prosecutors had alleged the priest knowingly startled a deacon with complex PTSD on several occasions, including an episode in a sacristy.
- The case went to trial because the priest contested a €14,000 penalty order equating to 140 day-fines, which would have counted as a prior conviction.
- Witness statements diverged, with parishioners and the deacon’s partner recalling events differently, and the priest reported losing his job with the Diocese of Aachen during the investigation.