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

[Davieson]

Of course people are scrutinising the prosecution - they are the ones having the evidence to prove the case.
The defence get less public scrutiny because they don't have anything to prove, they just have to cast doubt on or refute each defence point.

I'l be content whatever the final decision is of the judges, but one must admit that the process of getting there is an interesting one.

I meant, of course, each prosecution point

Sorry for any confusion.

 

[Mex]

Of course people are scrutinising the prosecution - they are the ones having the evidence to prove the case.
The defence get less public scrutiny because they don't have anything to prove, they just have to cast doubt on or refute each defence point.

I'l be content whatever the final decision is of the judges, but one must admit that the process of getting there is an interesting one.

Actually the defence has the evidence too under the inquisitorial system.

Snip
In both France and Germany the investigating magistrate will recommend a trial only if he is sure that there is sufficient evidence of guilt. The entire dossier of the pretrial proceedings is made available to the defense.

Inquisitorial procedure | Adversarial, Accused Rights & Evidence-Based | Britannica

Inquisitorial procedure, in law, one of the two methods of exposing evidence in court (the other being the adversary procedure; q.v.). The inquisitorial system is typical of countries that base their legal systems on civil or Roman law. Under the inquisitorial procedure, the pretrial hearing for

www.britannica.com

Which makes the interim decision to withdraw the arrest warrant in the middle of the trial even stranger for those of us used to an adversarial trial system. Trials do sometimes collapse for various reasons but in this event, the trial continues.
Strange
My opinion

Forgot to mention that according to the above, should CB wish to speak that is fine but " if he does, he is not put under oath." Definitely quite different.

 

[Mex]

I meant, of course, each prosecution point

Sorry for any confusion.

Please check up on the differences between the adversarial system and the inquisitorial system of judgement.
The differences are quite profound.

I think you are comparing apples with oranges by misunderstanding everyone's role in the proceedings

 

[frank-cole]

Actually the defence has the evidence too under the inquisitorial system.

Snip
In both France and Germany the investigating magistrate will recommend a trial only if he is sure that there is sufficient evidence of guilt. The entire dossier of the pretrial proceedings is made available to the defense.

Inquisitorial procedure | Adversarial, Accused Rights & Evidence-Based | Britannica

Inquisitorial procedure, in law, one of the two methods of exposing evidence in court (the other being the adversary procedure; q.v.). The inquisitorial system is typical of countries that base their legal systems on civil or Roman law. Under the inquisitorial procedure, the pretrial hearing for

www.britannica.com

Which makes the interim decision to withdraw the arrest warrant in the middle of the trial even stranger for those of us used to an adversarial trial system. Trials do sometimes collapse for various reasons but in this event, the trial continues.
Strange
My opinion

Forgot to mention that according to the above, should CB wish to speak that is fine but " if he does, he is not put under oath." Definitely quite different.

IMO this is why this is going to boil on for a long time under various appeals.

The evidence heard thus far has been very circumstantial, however it is quite telling that FF has gone after the admissibility of the usb evidence. It seems he’ll probably win that motion. Prosecuting cold cases isn’t akin to TV lawyer drama.

If they appeal I think they’ll want the balance of reaching the truth to be weighed up against CB’s humans rights. If a BKA dog Walker is the basis of a successful motion to prevent a rape victim from having all of their evidence heard, then I’m pretty sure the prosecution will have good grounds to escalate this. I doubt even the most reluctant of casual observers would want such a motion to pass.

 

[Davieson]

Is it normal practice in Germany for the prosecution to appeal against an acquittal/case dismissal ?

 

[Davieson]

IMO this is why this is going to boil on for a long time under various appeals.

The evidence heard thus far has been very circumstantial, however it is quite telling that FF has gone after the admissibility of the usb evidence. It seems he’ll probably win that motion. Prosecuting cold cases isn’t akin to TV lawyer drama.

If they appeal I think they’ll want the balance of reaching the truth to be weighed up against CB’s humans rights. If a BKA dog Walker is the basis of a successful motion to prevent a rape victim from having all of their evidence heard, then I’m pretty sure the prosecution will have good grounds to escalate this. I doubt even the most reluctant of casual observers would want such a motion to pass.

That wouldn't be a surprise considering that the USBs have nothing to do with the current cases being tried.

 

[frank-cole]

Of course people are scrutinising the prosecution - they are the ones having the evidence to prove the case.
The defence get less public scrutiny because they don't have anything to prove, they just have to cast doubt on or refute each defence point.

I'l be content whatever the final decision is of the judges, but one must admit that the process of getting there is an interesting one.

That wouldn't be a surprise considering that the USBs have nothing to do with the current cases being tried.

I disagree. Winning a motion of admissibility doesn’t depreciate the value of the evidence. FF likely found a technicality. If the usb had nothing to do with the cases it wouldn’t have been admitted as evidence in the first place. If it had no significance the defence wouldn’t be arguing its admissibility. You might wanna think this one through!

 

[Davieson]

I disagree. Winning a motion of admissibility doesn’t depreciate the value of the evidence. FF likely found a technicality. If the usb had nothing to do with the cases it wouldn’t have been admitted as evidence in the first place. If it had no significance the defence wouldn’t be arguing its admissibility. You might wanna think this one through!

Prosecution maybe thought it relevant. Defence didn't. What will the judges say ?

 

[Mex]

I disagree. Winning a motion of admissibility doesn’t depreciate the value of the evidence. FF likely found a technicality. If the usb had nothing to do with the cases it wouldn’t have been admitted as evidence in the first place. If it had no significance the defence wouldn’t be arguing its admissibility. You might wanna think this one through!

I agree with what you say. Which in effect displays just exactly what a train wreck this trial has become; the impression being that the MM case dominates the five trials which should rightfully be the focus of this trial.

This is proven by

• private detectives employed by MM's parents being called to give evidence
• BKA investigators in the MM case being called to give evidence
• SY investigators working on the MM case being called to give evidence
• Questions arising from the legal status of evidence collected for the MM case and that of other missing children
• the legality of alleged wiretapping with absolutely no locus in the five sexual cases under trial

Those are a few off the top of my head; but I'm sure there must be more where the MM case for which no charges have even been made as yet are the feature and not the five cases which should be the business of the court.

Basically what has been introduced in this court is quite often at variance with the way trials are supposed to be conducted and is all wrong.
My opinion

1. Admissibility of Evidence:
In Germany, evidence must satisfy certain criteria to be admissible in court. The primary criterion is relevance – the evidence must be directly related to the facts in dispute. Additionally, evidence must be legally obtained and not violate the principles of fairness. For example, evidence obtained through illegal wiretapping would generally be considered inadmissible.
...
Relevance: One of the essential principles in German evidence law is that evidence must be relevant to the case at hand. Only evidence that has a direct connection to the facts in dispute will be considered admissible.

Understanding the Principles of Evidence Law in Germany ▷ Cases - Rey Abogado

⚡Hello and welcome to this informative article on Understanding the Principles of Evidence Law in Germany! Before we dive into the fascinating world of ▷ Cases

reyabogado.com

 

[frank-cole]

Prosecution maybe thought it relevant. Defence didn't. What will the judges say ?

The judge will likely be ruling on its admissibility. FF’s game plan is to attack the admissibility on each thread of evidence, clustering the proceedings with countless motions. It’s been a clever defence, especially in a local court that may not be well versed in facing it.
If it wasn’t significant the prosecution wouldn’t have admitted it as evidence & the defence wouldn’t have been so quick to attack its admissibility.

IMO - acquittals will be born out of technicalities & admissibilities - appeals will try to unlock them. It won’t prevent the feigning of ‘factually innocent’ though…..

 

[Hygge]

Some might think it’s over but it isn’t The trial continues , interesting to compare the Braunschweiger Zeitung with only one journalist to the statements of the official press release.

MSN

www.msn.com

“
According to the court, there is no longer an urgent suspicion of the crime


The chamber denied the urgent suspicion of all charges, as the court further announced. An urgent suspicion exists if, according to the results of the investigation so far, there is a high probability that the accused committed the crime. The court no longer sees it that way.


Thus, until further notice, there is only a sufficient suspicion of the crime, which is necessary for the indictment and the trial. In the event of sufficient suspicion, the Chamber still considers a conviction to be more likely than an acquittal.”

 

[UK Girl]

IMO this is why this is going to boil on for a long time under various appeals.

The evidence heard thus far has been very circumstantial, however it is quite telling that FF has gone after the admissibility of the usb evidence. It seems he’ll probably win that motion. Prosecuting cold cases isn’t akin to TV lawyer drama.

If they appeal I think they’ll want the balance of reaching the truth to be weighed up against CB’s humans rights. If a BKA dog Walker is the basis of a successful motion to prevent a rape victim from having all of their evidence heard, then I’m pretty sure the prosecution will have good grounds to escalate this. I doubt even the most reluctant of casual observers would want such a motion to pass.

If the prosecution can appeal a loss when then has HCW repeatedly said in connection to CB that they only get the one chance for a conviction?

 

[frank-cole]

If the prosecution can appeal a loss when then has HCW repeatedly said in connection to CB that they only get the one chance for a conviction?

Appeals process is an extension to & a part of, the proceedings. They won’t be able to re prosecute the cases in the future, irrespective of whether they find more evidence. However there are exceptional circumstances where they can re-charge, but those exceptions are exceedingly rare & it would be incredibly unlikely that this case could be one. Final outcome will be final. I expect it to boil on for a while whilst the appeals run their course. I think the outcome will lead to the prosecution doing the appealing, but their is a remote vhance the defence may lose the cases or lose some of the cases. In that case, the defence would be doing the appealing. Or, for example if it’s a 3/2 result - both sides may run appeals. It’ll roll onto next year I think.

 

[UK Girl]

Appeals process is an extension to & a part of, the proceedings. Un

So ...there is no reason why CB could not be charged previously

 

[frank-cole]

So ...there is no reason why CB could not be charged previously

CB can be charged at anytime. The appeals proceedings happen at the end.

 

[UK Girl]

CB can be charged at anytime. The appeals proceedings happen at the end.

I do know when an appeals proceedings happen but my point was if they lost and can appeal it anyhow whats the issue? It was said years ago they have the evidence and yet ? This trial has been a shambles IMO

 

[Mex]

If the prosecution can appeal a loss when then has HCW repeatedly said in connection to CB that they only get the one chance for a conviction?

And therein lies the rub as highlighted by FF

Snip
FF said outside court: "What we have is a media pre-conviction because he has been named as a suspect in this well-known missing person case.
"Otherwise, there would never have been such media interest. And that's what the court must free itself from."
...
"At the core is the problem that the investigation into MM cannot be separated from the investigation into these cases which are the subject of this trial," FF said outside court.

Madeleine McCann suspect 'pre-convicted' by media in rape trial, lawyer argues

Christian Brückner's defence says his trial is tainted by him being repeatedly linked to Madeline.

www.bbc.co.uk

But of course the claim is utter rubbish and just another ploy on behalf of CB's defence. And what a self fulfilling prophecy it became. Anything at all pertaining to another case should never have been a topic in CB's trial for five serious sexual assaults. But it was; as the names on the witness list prove.

 

[Mex]

I do know when an appeals proceedings happen but my point was if they lost and can appeal it anyhow whats the issue? It was said years ago they have the evidence and yet ? This trial has been a shambles IMO

The evidence was in place to enable five indictments to be served which allowed the five serious sexual assaults to go to trial.

I do tend to agree with you that the present trial may well have been a shambles as indicated by what little evidence there is eventually reaches the public domain.
The thing about that is that in Germany it is the judiciary which is responsible for running trials not the prosecutor's office.

 

[Davieson]

I think I'll wait and see if there is an appeal, rather than get all excited over a possibility that there might be one.

 

[RichardKimble]

I think I'll wait and see if there is an appeal, rather than get all excited over a possibility that there might be one.

Well yes the verdict might go the way of guilty.