CRIMINAL LAW

Juvenile criminal law applies to all young people who were 14 but not yet 18 years old at the time of the offense. For adolescents, i.e. young people who were 18 but not yet 21 years old at the time of the offense, juvenile criminal law applies if the adolescent is still to be treated as an adolescent due to his or her specific development. So there are certain delays in maturity, or he is still accused of typical youth failure. Such malpractice to young people can be present in the case of acts that can be traced back, for example, to juvenile carelessness, imprudence or social immaturity. Usually the youthful character results from the motives of the deed such as thirst for adventure, arrogance, showing off, etc.
Juvenile criminal law does not contain its own youth-specific criminal offenses, but refers to the general provisions of criminal law, i.e. the criminal offenses of the Criminal Code (StGB) and (special) ancillary criminal law.
Nevertheless, juvenile criminal law differs from general criminal law in many respects. The most important difference is that juvenile criminal law is dominated by the idea of upbringing. The juvenile criminal procedure is a criminal procedure that was created in order to influence juvenile offenders not only with penalties, but above all with educational means. Accordingly, the aim of juvenile criminal proceedings is less to retaliate than to deter the juvenile offender from further criminal offenses. Juvenile criminal law does not recognize the penalties provided for in adult criminal law, but instead provides for so-called educational measures, disciplinary measures and juvenile punishment. A good defense is required so that these are not too high.

Narcotics criminal law is a specialty of criminal law. It regulates the traffic with illegal drugs.
The narcotics criminal law is regulated by law in the law on the traffic with narcotics (Narcotics Act - BtMG). The law, which among other things serves public health, determines in particular which drugs are illegal and which handling of them is punishable. In practice, particularly relevant narcotics are cannabis products (such as marijuana and hashish), cocaine, heroin or so-called "party drugs" such as amphetamine ("speed") or "ecstasy". The cultivation, manufacture, trade, import to and export from Germany, selling, selling, other marketing, acquisition and other procuring and possession can be punishable offenses when dealing with narcotics. However, mere self-consumption without participating in drug traffic is not a criminal offense.

Narcotics criminal law has some peculiarities, such as the relatively high threats of punishment (the law punishes the importation of not small quantities of drugs into Germany with 2-15 years imprisonment (Section 30 (1) BtMG); admission to a rehab facility (Section 64 StGB ); Threatening driving license measures or “therapy instead of punishment” (§§ 35 BtMG).

I am happy to advise you in any conflict with the law relating to narcotics.

Crimes against human life (murder, manslaughter, bodily harm resulting in death) are particularly stressful because of the high public interest.

An early and competent intervention of a defender is therefore particularly important. For a successful defense, knowledge of psychiatry, psychology, forensic medicine and forensic science, as I have acquired in my criminological studies, is important.

One of the essential steps in a successful defense is to review the legal side of the case. The murder characteristics of § 211 StGB need to be questioned and compared with the established case law. In-depth knowledge of the highest court rulings are indispensable tools of a defense lawyer.

Since the client is usually in custody until the main hearing, intensive care for both the client and the relatives is essential. High technical, but also a lot of social skills are required.

Arranging pre-trial detention is the most intense interference in the life of an accused and his relatives. According to theory, the presumption of innocence guaranteed in the Human Rights Convention applies, in practice arrests are still too fast and too many.
The issuing of an arrest warrant presupposes urgent suspicion and a reason for arrest. Reasons for detention are the risk of escape, blackout or repetition.
As a defense lawyer, I have to take countermeasures at all levels in cases of pre-trial detention.
With knowledge of the investigation file, the investigative authorities must counter the usually provisional assumption of an urgent suspicion by means of argumentation, requests for evidence and, if necessary, their own investigations.
In a majority of the cases - prematurely - the reason for detention is assumed to be a risk of escape. In view of the expectation of punishment - it is argued - the accused will want to evade the process. The defense has to put the expectation of punishment into perspective, ie assert exonerating moments for the accused. On the other hand, the social ties of the accused, which are often not or poorly ascertained, have to be put on record in order to at least achieve exemption from pre-trial detention, whereby the selection of the right legal remedy (oral detention test or complaint) requires tactical skill.

If the execution of pre-trial detention cannot - for the time being - be prevented, the defense must concentrate on structuring the conditions of detention. First and foremost, this includes ensuring regular visiting contacts with relatives, who are usually overwhelmed by the situation.

The victims of a crime also have special rights in criminal proceedings - this also applies in part to the relatives of victims of a crime.
For particularly serious crimes - such as B. murder, manslaughter or serious bodily harm - if victims (or relatives of victims) are provided by the court with a lawyer (Section 397a of the Code of Criminal Procedure).
This lawyer can then represent the victims in court proceedings, e.g. B. in the case of an accessory suit or in the context of necessary witness statements.
In this context, the court can also determine for the assignment of a victim's lawyer that the victims do not have to bear any costs for the lawyer. But even without judicial assignment, victims of criminal offenses generally have a right to participate in court proceedings as a joint plaintiff; If necessary, legal aid can also be applied for if the requirements for this are met.
You can e.g. B. lead in the following offenses:
Bodily harm offenses
Sex offenses
Libel etc.
As a lawyer, I can inspect all procedural files, represent and advise you in court hearings, and exercise applications and questions on your behalf (as a victim).
At the same time, additional civil law claims can be asserted for you within the framework of a so-called adhesion procedure - e.g. B. Claims for compensation for pain and suffering. This can potentially save considerable time and effort for additional legal proceedings.
Let us advise you when it comes to the Victims 'Protection Act, accessory suits, adhesion proceedings and other questions in connection with victims' rights.

When the law enforcement authorities investigate a person on suspicion of a sexual offense, this has more traumatic consequences for the life of the accused than in any other criminal offense area. Experience shows that the clients are initially completely overwhelmed, helpless and blocked by the situation. For example, if the accusation of sexual coercion,
Rape, sexual abuse of children, possession of child pornography or any other sexual offense, the suspicion alone can have significant negative effects on large areas of the accused's life, regardless of whether the accusation is right or wrong. Not infrequently the professional, economic and societal existence of the accused is alone
threatened by suspicion of a sexual offense. It is also often problematic that this area is associated with a high level of emotionalization and is highly embarrassed and that clients seeking advice cannot or do not want to turn to friends, family members or other confidants. It is not uncommon for clients to hesitate to turn to a criminal defense attorney or to speak openly with him. If there are provisional arrests, arrests and pre-trial detention - which is not uncommon in sexual criminal law cases - the consequences for the accused are of course even more severe. I also represent you in sexual law cases.

I will take over your criminal defense, also as a public defender. Contrary to the opinion of the layperson, a compulsory defense is not a second-class defense. In Section 140 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the Code of Criminal Procedure names the cases in which the accused must be provided with a lawyer by law. Proceedings cannot then take place without the defense counsel, so it is a so-called necessary defense.
These are exemplary cases in which a crime is involved (minimum imprisonment of one year), the accused is in pre-trial detention, or the accused has acted on probation and a high sentence is to be expected.
In cases in which the law provides for the accused to be accompanied by a defense attorney, one speaks of a compulsory defense. From the example cases listed, it can already be seen that these are cases in which a high level of competence and commitment is required of the defense attorney.
Based on my experience, I am happy to assist you as a public defender if the requirements are met.