Image: Symbolic photo: Weihbold
The court acquitted the youth of all charges due to lack of evidence in the early afternoon. The young woman was found dead in the entrance area of a residential complex in Döbling.
Defense attorney Florian Astl pointed out in his closing argument that it was still not certain whether the incriminated sexual acts had taken place consensually. The court therefore has to make its decision according to the principle “in dubio pro reo”, according to the lawyer. “I can’t remember anything,” the accused testified in court.
The court followed Astl’s arguments on Tuesday. It is a fact that a drug party took place, said judge Martina Hahn. “And the very long memory gap is also incomprehensible from a medical point of view.” In addition, DNA traces were found in the genital area of the woman. “But there is no evidence that violence has happened,” said the judge. With regard to the second charge – abandoning an injured person resulting in death – the chairman emphasized that it must be assumed that the accused was asleep and did not realize that the young woman was already showing no signs of life. “Since we don’t have more facts, we had to apply the rule of doubt,” said the judge, who emphasized that the accused had to get his addiction problem under control. Prosecutors did not issue a statement on Tuesday. The judgment is not final.
Stored in the stairwell
The accused is said to have used the drug-impaired condition of the 19-year-old at the after-party in his apartment that night to have sex with the young woman. When the then 17-year-old realized the next day that the woman was no longer showing any signs of life, he took her out of his apartment and put her in the entrance area of the stairwell without looking after her any further.
It should now be clear that the young woman had consumed drugs 30 to 90 minutes before her death – possibly together with the accused. The exact time of death of the 19-year-old is not certain and can probably no longer be clarified.
A 32-year-old resident discovered the woman in the stairwell when he went outside with his dog shortly before midnight. On the first day of the trial, the man said he approached the woman lying on the floor with her knees bent, touched her shoulder and finally shook her. He alerted the rescue.
The 32-year-old carried out resuscitation measures until the arrival of the emergency services. The 19-year-old no longer regained consciousness. Although the rescue workers then fought for their lives on the spot with a defibrillator, any help came too late. At the start of the trial at the end of July, the accused denied the abuse and spoke of memory gaps.
Source: Nachrichten
