ruth901
According to the Gelnhausen district court, two women from the Hanau/Fulda area did not reveal any official secrets, but did reveal private secrets. They have now been sentenced for this.
Gelnhausen – On the second day of the trial at the district court in Gelnhausen, the two 44-year-olds were acquitted of the first charge, and Judge König imposed sentences in the second case. She imposed a fine of 3,600 euros (60 daily rates of 60 euros each) on one of them for violating private secrets, and 3,500 euros (70 daily rates of 50 euros each) on the other for inciting the violation of private secrets.
Ex-judicial staff convicted of betraying secrets
One of the two 44-year-old convicts used to work at a judicial authority in Hanau, the other at one in Fulda. Since both knew each other privately, they apparently exchanged official information. Four cases were charged, about which the two women chatted about legal details because one of them apparently had a personal connection to it.
The exchange about a suspected arson at Christmas 2023 in a district of Waechtersbach was particularly explosive. These investigations were conducted internally by the judicial authorities with a special level of secrecy because it was initially assumed that there was a racially motivated background. It later turned out that it was probably an insurance fraud on the part of the owners.
The witnesses heard on the first day of the trial were top-class. On the one hand, this was public prosecutor Joachim Lehnertz, and on the other hand, the senior public prosecutor at the Hanau public prosecutor's office, Annette von Schmiedeberg.
This case was also “not normal” for Judge König, she admitted in the reasons for her judgment. It is very clear that personal data was passed on in a total of four cases that were subject to confidentiality. Judicial staff in particular must adhere to this. Both women acted intentionally. When assessing the sentence, the chairwoman positively took into account the two women's previously unpunished lives and the loss of professional reputation resulting from the indictment in court. One took advantage of the friendly contact with the other to obtain information.
Defense speaks of harmless coffee chat
Despite the betrayal of private secrets, the judge saw no evidence of the betrayal of important official secrets. The legislature would have set high hurdles for this. In this case, the action should have posed a concrete threat to important public interests.
Even in the case of the arson inwachtersbach, the investigative authorities would have had to consult after the allegations against the two women became known. However, the planned search of suspects and the execution of arrest warrants were not at risk. In this respect, the case did not mean a loss of reputation for the public prosecutor.
Dr. Frederik Buß from the Marburg public prosecutor's office, which was neutral in this case, considered the accusation of violating official secrets to be proven in his plea on the first day of the trial. He demanded fines of 14,400 and 12,000 euros. The defense was completely different: a lawyer demanded an acquittal for his client. In the case of the second defendant, the defense spoke of a “coffee chat” between the two women. (ls)
