Upsetting verdicts

Anna (12) case: first acquittal, then stinky finger

One of the ten defendants leaving the court(Bild: Bild, zVg, Krone KREATIV)

The ten acquittals in the trial for the violation of the sexual self-determination of a twelve-year-old girl in Vienna caused an outcry in the country. There are more than 3000 comments under the "Krone" report from the court alone. The outrage is huge.

In his verdict, the judge did indeed find culprits: The media, which in his opinion had reported too much and in some cases incorrectly on the case. He also devoted extensive words to the girl, who had become entangled in contradictions and whose chat messages could not be reconciled with the charges. 

Common sense tells you that a twelve-year-old child does not voluntarily have sex with ten boys in a room.

Opferanwalt Sascha Flatz

Bild: Eva Manhart

Group with "a lot of free time"
However, he spoke little about the ten young men, five of whom had criminal records: "The evidentiary proceedings clearly led to acquittals," he announces the decision of the lay jury. To the delight of the defendants and their ten (male) defense lawyers. Some of them made astonishing statements during the trial: "It's a group that has a lot of free time and lives out their sexuality particularly intensively," said one. "It was nothing against the victim's will, but there was complete consent." The girl had "wanted to please".

Anna's mother repeatedly burst into tears in the courtroom at the choice of words used by the defense lawyers. "I understand that lawyers also do their job. But the way my child is being portrayed here is simply unbearable," she says to "Krone" during a break in the proceedings. 

Teenagers gave each other tips
The case is staggering: the boys from Antonspark in Vienna-Favoriten had lured Anna (name changed) to a hotel, for example, where one after the other had sexual intercourse with her. Intimate acts also took place in a hobby room, a parking garage, a children's room and a stairwell, apparently including group sex. In chats, the young people gave each other tips on how best to get the girl to consent.

The outrage is huge, among Krone readers and politicians alike:

What was too often forgotten by too many of those involved in the disturbing trial: The victim was a child, even if she made herself look older. "We are talking about a twelve-year-old girl who was easily intimidated simply because of her youth and was not yet able to properly assess the actions," says victims' lawyer Sascha Flatz. "Common sense tells you that a twelve-year-old child should not voluntarily have sex with ten boys in a room," he says, wondering about the acquittals. And with him, many people across the country.