• Germany edition
National
Photo: DPA

Officer fined for asylum seeker death in jail

Published: 13 Dec 12 17:20 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.de/national/20121213-46757.html

A police officer was fined €10,800 on Thursday for his role in the death of asylum seeker Oury Jalloh, who died in police custody in a cell in Dessau eight years ago in circumstances which have never been properly explained.

The policeman, named only as Andreas S., was the supervising officer on duty on January 7, 2005 when 21-year Jalloh, an asylum seeker from Sierra Leone, burned to death in his cell. The mattress to which he was shackled was set on fire with a cigarette lighter.

After a trial lasting nearly two years, the regional court in Magdeburg found Andreas S. guilty of negligent homicide by omission to act, as the senior officer failed to check on Jalloh even after repeated fire alarms went off.

The court heard how police officers even switched the alarm off several times before finally checking the jail cell and discovered Jalloh's body.

Andreas S. had failed in his duty to look in the cell and should have reacted immediately to the fire alarm, said chief state prosecutor Christian Preissner, reported the Der Spiegel magazine on Thursday.

The officer received a fine of €10,800, nearly twice the amount demanded by the public prosecutor. Earlier charges of bodily harm with fatal consequences were dropped during the course of the trial due to a lack of evidence.

Along with a fellow policeman, Andreas S. had already been acquitted of negligent manslaughter of Jalloh in 2008 by the Dessau-Roßlau regional court. He was charged again when the case was re-opened in January 2011 after the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) said the initial verdict had been flawed.

The chain of events could not have happened as was presented during the trial, the court ruled. Judges were unable to determine whether Jalloh set the fire himself, or how it would have been possible to do so, calling it a “substantial gap in the consideration of evidence.”

The pair said they had tied Jalloh's hands and feet because he had been violent after being arrested for harassing two women while under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

An exact sequence of events after Jalloh's arrest has not yet come to light. In a separate civil case brought against Andreas S., Jalloh's mother and brother claimed the victim must have already been unconscious when the fire broke out, because they said he could not have physically lit the fire when shackled by his hands and feet.

But the state prosecutor saw no evidence for this theory and rejected the plaintiff's application for further clarification from fire experts.

Although he denied any wrongdoing in what the defence described as a chain of unfortunate events, Andreas S. said he still deeply regretted not having been able to save Jalloh, reported the website of Der Spiegel magazine.

As the verdict was read out, human rights activists stood outside the court holding placards reading, “It was murder!”

The Local/jlb

What do you think? Leave your comment below.


Your comments about this article:

08:08 December 14, 2012 by raandy
His hands and feet were tied to the ,I assume four corners of the bed by officers and then his matteres catches on fire with a lighter and no one is doing jail time?

The officers that turned off the alarm , should also be fined and sent down the road to the unemployment office.

They managed to put in the article that he was being disorderly and ((harassing two women,)) that surely paints him as a problem,and an undesirable, could have just stated he was out of control from alcohol and substance abuse and let the jury and judge decide his fate.

Every person that was in contact with this asylum seeker should no longer be employed by any correctional facility.

If the detainee did not light the mattress on fire then someone intentionally did.

but

I am sure as is often the case with these articles, there is a lot more here than is being printed.
12:39 December 14, 2012 by blackboot11
an Interesting imbalance of information in the press:

this article is about a person that was accused, found guilty and given a penalty for his deeds and his full name and face have been shielded/hidden from the viewers... because he is white and german? While in a recent article of the 'Bonn Bomber' gives full names and full face fotos of people of interest in this case. because they are not germans and they are not aryan... Some thing just don't ever change here in the DE...
18:16 December 14, 2012 by DULS
@blackboot11

dude honestly, come on !!! I found your comment and more your reasoning very cheap indeed.
19:17 December 14, 2012 by Minitaff
@ blackboot11

man, you pull that race card!! He wouldn't be dead if he was law abiding! oh don't tell me, he was arrested because he was a black african.........i think i will pull the race card now ....YOU are a racist!!!
13:32 December 18, 2012 by George Palmer
raandy-they don't have beds in cells so stop being inflamatory (pardon the pun). Every time a black person dies in custody the race card is thrown in and hysteria results. Even if the officers had shown the utmost professionalism and the prisoner died of natural causes there would be allegations of murder and malpractise. The police in this case acted negligently, but they cannot win in any case involving coloured people. Race has become a lucrative industry for lawyers, relatives, activists and idiots alike.
ADD YOUR COMMENT   (YOU MUST LOG IN OR REGISTER TO MAKE A COMMENT)
Today's headlines
Photo: DPA

Cooler and wetter week ahead

Rain in the west, sunshine in the east - Germany's weather was divided on Monday, as the German Weather Service (DWD) warned of an unsettled week ahead. READ () »

Photo: DPA

20,000 Goths gather in Leipzig

More than 20,000 Goths from all over the world gathered in Leipzig in eastern Germany over the Whitsun weekend to celebrate all things dark and Gothic. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Germany grapples with nuclear energy phaseout

Germany's energy transition project - in which nuclear power will be phased out and replaced with energy from renewable sources - is facing the challenges of cheap coal, unresolved energy storage and an out-of-date electricity grid. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Fans flock to London for all-German CL final

With two Bundesliga clubs in the Champions League final, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund supporters are rushing to London for this weekend's Wembley showdown. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Hungary's Orban: Merkel policy like Nazi invasion

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbàn deepened diplomatic tensions with Germany after comparing the policies of German Chancellor Angela Merkel to the Nazi military invasion of his country ordered by Adolf Hitler. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Pricey Reichstag visitor centre scrapped

Visitors to Berlin's iconic Reichstag parliament building will continue to face long queues before they can enter through a temporary container, after politicians scrapped plans for an expensive underground visitor centre. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Police warn against high-tech Islamist attacks

The Federal Criminal Police Office is warning of a new type of Islamist terrorist threat from the air that could attack both passenger and cargo planes as well as airport facilities, the Welt am Sonntag newspaper reported. READ () »

Photo: DPA

Some fear inflation if small euro coins cut

European Union proposals to eliminate one and two cent euro coins is annoying some Germans, including a few at the Bundesbank, while others think an EU idea to introduce one and two-euro notes is a good one. READ () »

More National
RECEIVE OUR NEWSLETTER AND ALERTS
Highlights
Photo: DPA
SOCIETY »
Harmless pink fun or a bad influence on young girls? A life-size Barbie dream house attraction opened in Berlin to protests including a topless woman burning a doll in effigy.
Photo: DPA
OPINION »
At his final heartbeat I knew I had to act. Our German of the Week is Tina K., who, after her brother was beaten to death, has been campaigning for an end to street violence in Berlin.
Photo: DPA
LIFESTYLE »
The Local List: Ten German words with double meanings
Photo: DPA
LIFESTYLE »
The Local's English-language movie listings for Germany
Photo: DPA
LIFESTYLE »
Conflict is part of the fabric of Berlin, but the city's "Peacemaker" soothes things over. Jessica Ware tracked him down for a chat.
Photo: DPA
OPINION »
It might be politically toxic, but it's time to hit the brakes on Germany's reckless driving culture, argues The Local's Ben Knight.
Photo: M&S
SPONSORED ARTICLE
Move over Berlin: why London is Germany's new fashion capital
Photo: Private
OPINION »
For this edition of My German Career, former US military man turned armed guard Keith Alban talks about leaving home in search of a better quality of life.
Photo: Katie Needs
SOCIETY »
Offseason, Germany's largest island Rügen might not top many peoples' list of dream holidays. But as The Local discovered, its quiet beauty makes it worth a trip to escape city bustle.
Photo: DPA
OPINION »
Confused about the hundreds of euros missing from your pay packet? Don't panic - the latest in The Local's JobTalk series looks at German social security payments.
Photo: DPA
LIFESTYLE »
Is that your Handy ringing? This week's Local List takes a look at 12 misused English words in German.
Photo: A Peoples' Picture
LIFESTYLE »
An American is stirring up creative spontaneity in Dresden by leaving disposable cameras around for strangers' use, before collecting them and displaying the results online.
Photo: Private
LIFESTYLE »
After it was revealed that Angela Merkel had a Polish grandfather, Matthew Luxmoore set out to find where she could connect to her roots in Berlin's sizable Polish community.
Photo: DPA
LIFESTYLE »
Why isn't everyone wearing Lederhosen? It's easy for foreigners to stereotype Germany, but this week's Local List is dedicated to debunking common myths.
Photo: Private
OPINION »
The last time Si Liberman saw Berlin, he was thousands of feet in the air on a US bombing raid over Nazi Germany. Nearly seven decades later, he returned to the city.
Photo: DPA
OPINION »
What are the hidden rules of etiquette foreigners need to watch out for while doing business in Germany? The Local's JobTalk series has tips for keeping on the right side of your colleagues.
Photo: DPA
NATIONAL »
All of The Local's 'Germans of the Week' so far
Photo: DPA
NATIONAL »
Every town and city from The Local's My Germany series
Furniture Leasing Corporation
SPONSORED ARTICLE
The furniture-free way to relocate to Germany
Photo: Henrik Trygg/imagebank.sweden.se
SPONSORED ARTICLE
Top five reasons to enrol on an Executive MBA



Latest news from The Local in France

More news from France at thelocal.fr

Latest news from The Local in Norway

More news from Norway at thelocal.no

Latest news from The Local in Sweden

More news from Sweden at thelocal.se

Latest news from The Local in Switzerland

More news from Switzerland at thelocal.ch

See all ads | Join the Marketplace

Jobs in Germany, in English

785 jobs available
593 new jobs this week
99 new jobs today

ALL JOBS »

Blog
Essentials

Dating
Looking for your own blonde bombshell? Or is the strong, silent type more your style? Find a German sweetheart here.

Weather
"After clouds comes clear weather," say the Germans. But what about after that? Find out in The Local's weather section.

Blog
German stuff that's distracting us today.

Noticeboard
Whether you want to buy, sell, hire, announce or promote something, here's the place to do it - completely free of charge.

Discuss
Debate the news, ask for advice, make friends - or just let off steam.

Search News


Register

Register now for:
> Free use of noticeboard
> Special discounts
> Weekly news roundup
> Unlimited use of discuss

REGISTER FOR FREE »

News from the Goethe-Institut
News from Young Germany
  • German first feature film in Cannes
    A directorial debut from Germany makes it to the competition “Un Certain Regard” at the famous film festival on the Côte d’Azur.
  • Traveling Germany: Europa-Park
    Think theme parks:Roller coasters, colorful rides, entertainment, thrills. Think Germany: Europa-Park is the largest amusement park in the country, second in Europe only to Disneyland Paris.
  • Frankfurt – the digital hub
    The Internet hub in Frankfurt am Main is the largest in the world and places Germany in a leading position in the digital world.
  • The European Year of Citizens
    2013 is the European Year of Citizens. They‘re invited to contribute their ideas for the EU, and to discover more about their rights as EU citizens. An example: labour mobility.
  • Neuschwanstein Castle: In Photos
    Neuschwanstein is the most popular tourist attraction in Germany. And for good reason. King Ludwig II's castle looks like it fell out of a book of fairy tales.
News from DeutschlandOnline

Toytown Germany
Germany's English-speaking crowd
Trade CFDs with InterTrader.com
Start trading shares, equities, forex, etc. No commission on equities; Low min. margins. Apply for a CFDs account now!
Little house in Spain
'Charming, old, beamed cottage for holiday let in Jesus Pobre, Alicante, Spain
www.littlehouseinspain.com/
Albatross Insurance
Professional and qualified consultancy on all insurance and finance matters in Germany, Telephone: +49 2163 571 1740, Email: bg@albatross-assurance.com
www.albatross-assurance.com
Hotel reservations in Berlin
Visiting Berlin anytime soon? Book your hotel in Berlin here.
Rental apartments in Berlin
For home-from-home holiday accommodation, search for a Berlin apartment to rent.