Germany/Portugal - Christian Brueckner, 27 @ time of 1st crime (2004), charged with sexual assault crimes, Praia de Rocha, Portugal. #4

[RichardKimble]

I agree - if he’s released there is a grave danger to the public, especially to children & vulnerable people. Perhaps not initially but within a couple of years I wouldn’t be surprised if he was adding convictions 19 & 20 to his rap sheet. He’s a serial offender & nothing has stopped him from reoffending.

I think the defence have tried to paint a picture of him as a deteriorating ‘victim’, trying to garner some sympathy for the judges. It’s a clever move. CB could quite easily turn up everyday looking polished but they’ve chosen for him not to. In contrast the victims have been strong, well kept & bold.

I see the appeals as a positive development because if there was an element of bias, the appeals will have pulled attention on the judges & would create a more balanced trial. I think 4 very experienced defence lawyers all running 1 case, will likely be something the local court is not used to.

If he's released it will because he will have served his time and been cleared in the five cases, fortunately we're not locking people up for reasons apart from guilt.

 

[frank-cole]

The converse applies as well. Just because someone is found guilty of a crime doesn't mean that they actually are guilty, merely that it has been so determined by that court.
Think of all the miscarriages of justice that have been shown to have occurred over the years

Agree - that’s why I think these 5 cases will be locked in appeals & motions well into next year. It won’t be over in October.

There’ll always be a correlation between thoughts on the prosecution in general & a person’s opinion in the MM case. That’ll also play into legally/factually innocent debate.

When there’s a final outcome to the 5 cases, it needs accepting. Just as we’ve all accepted CB’s conviction in the DM case. Can’t be both ways I’m afraid.

 

[Davieson]

Agree - that’s why I think these 5 cases will be locked in appeals & motions well into next year. It won’t be over in October.

There’ll always be a correlation between thoughts on the prosecution in general & a person’s opinion in the MM case. That’ll also play into legally/factually innocent debate.

When there’s a final outcome to the 5 cases, it needs accepting. Just as we’ve all accepted CB’s conviction in the DM case. Can’t be both ways I’m afraid.

Quite, one must always accept the verdict of the court - until overruled by a higher court.

 

[Niner]

So... any info on what happened in today's trial? TIA!

 

[RichardKimble]

So... any info on what happened in today's trial? TIA! View attachment 522688

Doesn't appear to be, did it even sit?

 

[Anxala]

Might I respectfully suggest that attempting to glean any information at all from the most quoted paywalled articles is a futile exercise which rarely results in any meaningful additional information being added to the public domain.
My opinion

Are you kidding me? Futile and meaningless?! Without the local and wider German press coverage, this thread would be deader than the deadest dodo, reliant upon the likes of the tabloids and people like Jon Clarke, neither of whom are in the business of serious or objective reporting.

The local German press in particular has done an excellent job, without which none of us would have a clue about what's actually going on in court. And I suspect that's the majority opinion on here.

Rather than dismissing it as futile and meaningless, perhaps it would be more appropriate to thank those who've gone and who continue to go to the trouble of reporting back from behind the paywalls, at their own expense, for the benefit of the rest of us.

We are told the State is picking up the tabs if no-one else is and indeed, that is how it should be. But isn't it a very prestigious line up of criminal lawyers who have been devoting so much of their time to CB for so many years.

There is a win-win issue which springs to mind regarding that

• one couldn't put a price on the value of the free advertising

My opinion

Free advertising for what?

 

[frank-cole]

Quite, one must always accept the verdict of the court - until overruled by a higher court.

That’d’be how the legal system works. Hence why appeal processes exist. Up until the day a MM verdict appeal (defence or prosecution) comes, we’ll have many a motion & many a twist & turn. All that inevitable back-&-forth debate will come. People will hash out every thread of detail & it’ll always be polarising. I’m pro-victim, so my biggest concern from now until the end - is them not having all of the evidence in their cases heard.

 

[Davieson]

That’d’be how the legal system works. Hence why appeal processes exist. Up until the day a MM verdict appeal (defence or prosecution) comes, we’ll have many a motion & many a twist & turn. All that inevitable back-&-forth debate to come, when it comes to the case I hope the victims are front & centre. Always.

I really don't think we are going to see to see an MM trial in a German court.

 

[frank-cole]

I really don't think we are going to see to see an MM trial in a German court.

It’s interesting you say that because I was having this conversation (in the real world) yesterday with a colleague at work. I don’t have any understanding on the barriers between Germany, CB & the case being heard in England or Portugal. Nor do I know what limitations double jeopardy has outside of jurisdiction. I’m assuming the ECHR covers that. If CB gets a nailed on release date early next year, I expect we’ll get a lot more clarity answer on the MM case between then & now.

 

[Niner]

Doesn't appear to be, did it even sit?

As far as I know they were supposed to sit! And only coming up with articles from July 4th...

 

[Hygge]

There is one from today behind paywall
„

BKA chief profiler considers Christian B. to be a serial rapist“​

BKA-Chefprofiler hält Christian B. für Serienvergewaltiger

Fortsetzung im Prozess gegen den Maddie-Verdächtigen nach der Sommerpause: Das Gutachten des Fallanalytikers hinterlässt viele Fragen.

www.braunschweiger-zeitung.de

 

[Trivento]

BKA-Chefprofiler hält Christian B. für Serienvergewaltiger

Fortsetzung im Prozess gegen den Maddie-Verdächtigen nach der Sommerpause: Das Gutachten des Fallanalytikers hinterlässt viele Fragen.

www.braunschweiger-zeitung.de