Child abuse trial: Stepmother sentenced to nine years in prison
At the Salzburg Regional Court, the trial of the couple, who allegedly abused their children for years, became natural. The stepmother was sentenced to nine years in prison and to pay four-figure damages.
SALZBURG. The trial against a couple for natural violence had been going on at the Salzburg regional court since June 2022. From 2009 to 2018 they are said to have physically and mentally abused their children. 18 witnesses were summoned during the last hearings in December. The verdict was made today. The stepmother was sentenced to nine years in prison. Meeting a child, she was acquitted. They each have to pay the other three children 8,000 euros in compensation for pain and suffering. The father was sentenced to a conditionally suspended three-month prison term for assault and coercion. The judgment is not final.
years of abuse
A Salzburg couple was in court again today. They are accused of years of abuse and draconian punishment of their four children (now aged between 16 and 23). The victims are the biological children of the accused man. After the divorce from his biological mother in 2006, his new partner moved in in 2008. After the marriage, the couple is said to have started to cultivate a style of parenting that was both very strong and violent. Public prosecutor Ricarda Eder sees this style of upbringing as a possible threat to the physical and psychological well-being of the children.
The accusation
The two are accused of the usual exercise of violence according to §107b StGB. Specifically, the father and stepmother are accused of hitting their children from 2009 to 2018 and psychologically abusing them with certain methods. Among other things, they are said to have slapped the children and pushed them down the stairs.
Other allegations are: one day tying up one of the boys with tape, knee bends and standing outside in the cold for hours, locking the children in their rooms for days, freezing cold showers, putting their heads in the rain barrel and standing unclothed against the wall for several hours. The parents are said to have taken photos of the latter and threatened to put the children back with these photos with friends. According to the public prosecutor’s office, the statements made by the victims and witnesses can be classified as credible. Due to the long duration of the alleged use of violence, the sentence is five to 15 years.
The defence
So far, the two defendants have firmly rejected the allegations. They say they love their children and cannot explain the allegations. In most cases, only television and smartphone bans would have been imposed as penalties. Sometimes squats were used for movement and standing in the room like tin soldiers, but never for more than 15 minutes. The two also claim that the children only slapped their ears twice in their lives. One is said to have come in part to the birth mother in 2004. The other would have been missed by the accused stepmother in 2012 due to very irresponsible behavior. An important detail that the defender of the two noted in June that they had been accompanied by an expert from the youth welfare office for 16 years. Didn’t notice anything. In addition, one of the children denies the statements made by his siblings.
The judgment
The verdict came in the afternoon. The first accused stepmother was found guilty of the crime of violence in relation to three children. She became one sentenced to nine years imprisonment. In a way she was acquitted. They each have to pay 8,000 euros in compensation for the other three children.
The second-in-command father was found guilty of assault and coercion. He received a suspended sentence of three months imprisonment.
Neither the two defendants nor the prosecutor made a statement. The judgment is therefore not final.
More on the subject:
Parents are said to have abused children for years
You might also be interested in:
Slovenian accused of serious fraud
Lungau teacher is said to have sexually harassed students