On husband's laptop

Doctor finds gruesome videos, makes big mistake

Medical professional found images of abuse, photographed them and saved them. She faces up to two years in prison for this.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Imre Antal studio v-zwoelf – stock.adobe.com)

Back in 2021, a Viennese woman found child abuse images on the laptop of her husband and child's father. But now the 46-year-old is sitting before the criminal court herself - because she made a fatal mistake ... 

It is a curious criminal trial that is taking place in Vienna's Landl district. A 46-year-old doctor is sitting in the prosecutor's chair. She remembers: "On New Year's Eve 2021, my husband left me alone. I thought he was being unfaithful." So she searched his laptop, which was always open in the living room anyway. 

Shock find on teacher's laptop
"Instead of finding messages with another woman, there was child pornography." The Viennese woman was horrified to discover that her son's father - who worked as a teacher at the time - had a pedophilic tendency. "I was so shocked. It was very violent," she described in court.

USB stick kept for almost three years
And that's when the doctor made a fatal mistake that has now earned her a criminal complaint for the production and possession of child abuse images, with a penalty of up to two years in prison. She photographed the files with her cell phone, saved them on a USB stick - but did not go to the police ...

The law requires no motivation here. Imagine drugs that you find and keep. That is a criminal offense.

Die Richterin versucht, mit einem Vergleich nachzuhelfen.

It wasn't until almost three years later, when they were already separated, that the 46-year-old filed for divorce. A few weeks later, she dropped the bombshell and finally handed over the USB stick with the gruesome images to the police. The result: her now ex-husband was sentenced to 15 months conditional imprisonment and has to undergo three years of therapy.

It came as a shock to the mother that she now also had to stand before a judge. "I can't figure out what my crime is," she wonders. That is also one reason why she did not accept the diversion she was offered before the trial. She should have paid 5000 euros, then the proceedings would have been dropped.

Ms. Rat: "I understand you on a human level"
Mrs. Rat patiently explains to her: "You didn't go to the police straight away. You saved it and kept it. That is what is punishable. I understand you humanly, but the law simply says otherwise." She offers the 46-year-old another diversion: 100 euros flat-rate costs and a year's probation. As this is not enough for the public prosecutor, the Vienna Higher Regional Court has to decide.

Meanwhile, the woman continues to fight with her convicted ex over custody of their ten-year-old son. The former teacher - who was dismissed - was still allowed to see the child during supervised visits. Because there was now an expert opinion that the man posed no danger, the supervision could be completely removed.