A British expat who was fined 600 euros (£500) by German police after telling someone ‘I feel you’re a racist’ has been cleared after two years.
Arthur Goldberg, 30, objected to the effective in January 2024 and was prosecuted within the courts for the remark.
A judge finally acquitted him of the fees in February and ordered the state to pay all the prices of the proceedings.
Insulting someone is a criminal offence in Germany but Arthur successfully argued he was protected by freedom of expression rights.
Arthur told Metro: ‘This was a colossal waste of time. The law was obviously on my side.
‘This just created delays within the court system that might have been used for more vital cases.’
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The online designer, who moved to Germany over five years ago, told an worker of Leipzig University ‘I feel you’re racist’ during a gathering about applying for a masters programme in September 2022.
The freelance web designer had missed the May application deadline and thought it was discriminatory that German students were still in a position to apply in September.
A frustrated Arthur then made the remark at the tip of a ‘tense’ and ‘heated’ meeting.
Arthur said: ‘I felt I used to be being discriminated against. It wasn’t targeted towards her individually but the very fact she was enforcing a policy which I perceived to be discriminatory, but at the identical time you possibly can argue that it was towards her.’
Leipzig University told Metro their worker felt offended and had tried to finish the conversation.
The worker reported the incident to the police and a number of months later officials asked Arthur to offer a counter-statement.
He refused to participate in victim-offender mediation later that yr and in January 2024 he received a penal order with a 600 euros effective.
Arthur was ‘completely shocked’ telling Metro previously: ‘I didn’t think anywhere within the free world you possibly can be prosecuted for insulting anyone.’
Section 185 of the German Criminal Code criminalises insults which might be an attack on an individual’s honor, by expressing disregard or contempt.
Town’s public prosecutor decided to pursue Arthur in court when he objected to the effective, but he had to attend two years for a trial date to be set.
The online designer was finally brought in front of a judge on the local regional court (Amtsgericht) on February twenty third this yr.
Arthur recalled said: ‘My lawyer mentioned the liberty of expression laws and said my remark was also a broader statement towards the university.
‘There was one prosecutor present who didn’t make a robust argument. They simply presented the facts and stopped there.’
If he lost, Arthur would have needed to pay the effective and canopy the court costs, which might have been hundreds of euros.
But Judge Wondra ruled in his favour, concluding that his remark was objective criticism (Sachkritik) within the context they were made and so was protected by freedom of expression laws within the country’s structure.
Arthur was acquitted by the judge, who ruled that the state pay for the prices of the proceedings.
The Brit reacted: ‘It was a giant relief. I had been waiting for such an extended time.
‘Due to actions of the general public prosecutors, this wasted numerous time for the court and myself.’
Despite his frustration on the delays, Arthur did praise the German system that ‘should you are patient you’ll be able to get a good result ultimately’.
He added: ‘There may be all the time a technique to appeal and make your voice heard. That did occur on this case despite the colossal waste of time.’
A spokesperson for Leipzig University previously told Metro in relation to their application deadlines: ‘In some cases, international applicants have earlier deadlines than German applicants.
‘That is primarily attributable to aspects similar to where the applicant obtained their higher education entrance qualification.
‘These earlier deadlines help be certain that international students can begin their degree programme on time at the beginning of the semester.
‘There could be absolute confidence of discrimination; the goal is to offer all international applicants with one of the best possible probability of successfully completing the admissions process, with equal opportunities being a key priority.’
The University declined to comment further.
A spokesperson for Leipzig Public Prosecutor’s Office said they were unable to comment.
Germany’s anti-insult laws have come under scrutiny before.
They criminalise defamatory criticism, somewhat than objective criticism, which is usually not protected by freedom of expression.
In November 2024, the country’s Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck pressed charges against a person who called him a ‘skilled idiot’.
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