Rtitel Filing criminal charges

RL1	Report abuser to the police – yes or no
RL2	Write down what you remember
RL3	Photographs
RL4	Certified medical statement
RL5	Talk to witnesses
RL6	Report to the police
RL7	Questioning
RL8	What the public prosecutor does
RL9	If you do not make a statement
RL10	Trial and accompaniment
RL11	Sentencing
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R1

Police and the law
are obliged to protect a woman from a violent partner.
However, this does not happen automatically - you will have to do a great deal yourself. Therefore, you should consider the pros and cons before you act:

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R1_1

Pros:

•  When they are reported, many abusers realise for the first time that
-  they act wrongfully
-  they are violent
-  they may face penal action
-  they will have to change

•  Reporting the abuser may motivate him to seek help from a counselling centre for male violence.

•  A criminal complaint will substantiate and support your civil case at the family court.

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R3

Cons
•  He could threaten you in order to prevent you from testifying.

•  Often it is his word against yours (Aussage gegen Aussage). Unless a woman or the police have evidence against the abuser, the case will be dismissed (Verfahren wird eingestellt)!

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R4

Write down what you remember:
Make notes whenever the abuser insulted, threatened, or attacked you;
place, time, witnesses.
Your notes can serve as evidence that his violence cannot be attributed to an “isolated incident”.
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R5

Take pictures of injuries and damages
On holiday, it is natural to take pictures of people, objects, places. Now you can do the same to secure evidence. Take photographs of:
 
•  injuries
•  objects he used to hit you
•  damaged furniture, etc.
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R6

Certified medical statement (ärztliches Attest)
A medical statement attesting injuries or a rape is an important piece of evidence in court. Lawful documentation of injuries is important, which means including an explanation of the connections between the causes and the injuries.
Even if you are not sure whether to report the abuser, a medical statement must be made immediately following the offence.

Injuries registered in the medical record (ärztliches Krankenblatt) can be certified at a later time.

R7

Where?
A medical statement can be written by your gynaecologist - ask him/her to preserve the evidence - or by a general practitioner. Any injuries that are not visible should be examined in a hospital emergency room.

Important:
During the examination, point out any injuries and impairments, no matter how small.

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R8

Talk to witnesses
It is not you, but the offender, who should feel ashamed in front of the neighbours.
Therefore ask your neighbours whether they heard or saw anything. Have their observations put in writing, because if the process begins much later, witnesses often no longer remember.
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R9

Filing criminal charges (Anzeige erstatten)

When?:
Anytime. You may report him to the police immediately after the offence, days or even months later. If a very long period has elapsed, you should explain why you waited so long.

How?:
Describe what happened. Give the time and place of each event, name witnesses, and submit medical statements.

Where?:
In writing at the public prosecutor's office (Staatsanwaltschaft) or orally to the police.
Call ahead and ask which police department is responsible for domestic violence. You can insist on speaking to a female police officer and have someone you trust accompany you. If this person is also a witness, he/she cannot be present when you are being questioned.
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R10

Questioning (Vernehmung)
The police will also take a statement from the abuser.
Your bad experiences are not sufficient evidence - it must be proven that the abuser has committed the crime. You can help by providing evidence:

• Your statement:
Report all acts of violence that have been committed. Inform the police if you fear further violent acts against you or your children and be specific about what the abuser has threatened.

• Certified medical statements
• Witnesses
• Photographs - Are there damaged objects or other evidence of a fight at your residence that the police could photograph?
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R11

The police/constabulary will record your statement. Read this report carefully and sign it only if your statement has been recorded accurately. If it is inaccurate, demand that the necessary changes be made before you sign it.
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R12

After questioning
• Ask the police for the reference number: in Germany (Vorgangsnummer);
With this information you can inquire at the public prosecutor's office (Staatsanwaltschaft) about the status of your case.

• Note down what you have told the police: situation, places, dates, persons involved, sequence of events, the exact wording of threats.
It may be a long time before court proceedings begin. If your testimony in court differs from the statement you gave the police, it may be used against you.

With the help of a legal advisor or lawyer, you may wish to institute joint action (Nebenklage) in criminal proceedings. You will then be entitled access to the files (Akteneinsicht) and can reread your police statement.
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R13

What the public prosecutor does
The public prosecutor (Bezirks-/Staatsanwaltschaft) checks whether there is sufficient evidence to file charges.

R14

• If there are no court legal proceedings or a penalty order (Strafbefehl), the abuser will be sentenced to a fine (Geldstrafe) or to a prison sentence suspended on probation (Freiheitsstrafe auf Bewährung), for a year at most.

• or there will be a trial, which concludes with sentencing, a dismissal or an acquittal

• or there will be no trial and the case will be dismissed (Einstellung des Verfahrens).
A lawyer can appeal such a decision by filing a complaint (Beschwerde).
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R16

If you do not make a statement

If you are engaged, married, or are related to the abuser by blood or marriage, you have the right to refuse to give evidence (Aussageverweigerungsrecht).

At any point, you can say: »I don't want to make a statement« (»lch möchte nicht aussagen«). You do not have to give reasons for this, but you must go to the public prosecutor's office or to court and inform them that you do not want to make a statement.

In Germany, this will probably discontinue proceedings if no further evidence is present, because the court cannot use your former statements.
The file will be kept for several years, and it is possible to resume proceedings (Wiederaufnahme des Verfahrens) should you be willing to give evidence at a later time.

If you decide not to give testimony at the trial, the abuser will be acquitted unless there is other sufficient evidence or he makes a confession (Geständnis).
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R17

Trial and accompaniment
At the trial you will have to recount everything that happened. You will be questioned by the public prosecutor as well as the abuser's attorney.

If you are afraid of meeting the abuser inside the courthouse, you must inform the court. The telephone number can be found in the summons to appear (Ladung).

It is a public trial. Take people you trust with you. The following agencies offer competent persons who can accompany you and counsel you in cases involving violence against women:

Women's shelters (Frauenhaus), women's counselling centres (Frauenberatungsstelle), emergency hotlines (Notruf), and intervention agencies (Interventionsstelle)

Counselling centres for the protection of victims and witnesses (Opfer- oder Zeugenschutzberatung)
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R18_19

Sentencing in Germany
Bodily injury (Körperverletzung) can be punished with imprisonment of up to 5 years.
What can generally be expected is:

• 	a fine (Geldstrafe) or prison sentence suspended on probation (Freiheitsstrafe auf Bewährung)
•  	a prison sentence without probation (Freiheitsstrafe ohne Bewährung)
• 	a warning with threat of punishment (Verwarnung mit Strafvorbehalt)
• 	acquittal (Freispruch)
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