Almost nine years in prison

Pedagogue tortured stepchildren: “But I love them”

A senate of the Linz Higher Regional Court came to the Salzburg Regional Court for the appeal hearing.(Bild: Scharinger Daniel)

The public prosecutor is "speechless" and even for the judges of the Linz Higher Regional Court it is "an unprecedented case": a woman has been imprisoned for eight years and eight months for violence against her three stepchildren. "But I love them," she affirmed in her closing words.

The three children, who are now teenagers and adults respectively, have been through an ordeal that has lasted for years: as the court ruled, the stepmother had tortured the three children with draconian parenting measures. In January 2023, the regional court handed down a nine-year prison sentence for the continued use of violence - with a sentence range of between five and 15 years.

Years of abuse
At the appeal trial on Tuesday in Salzburg, the chairwoman of the senate quoted from the file: forced to eat, head in the rain barrel, cold showers several times, naked against the wall, locked in the room for days, pushed down the stairs, forced to stand around for hours or squat until exhausted - and regular slaps in the face. The three victims - two girls and a boy - were between five and nine years old at the time of the abuse, which took place between 2009 and 2018.

Acts explained as "excessive demands"
"She was overwhelmed", said the defense lawyer and found that the sentence was too high. The woman, who until recently ran a toddler group as a teacher, said in her closing words: "I made mistakes, but I love the children. I only wanted the best for them." She explained her actions as being "overtired" because of the job. "That leaves you speechless," said the public prosecutor and asked for the sentence to be confirmed: "The sanction is appropriate."

The chairwoman of the senate also had clear words: "It's shocking and inexplicable. This is an unprecedented case." Due to the long duration of the proceedings - mainly because of an expert opinion - the senate of judges deducted four months. This means that the woman must serve eight years and eight months in prison.