Advertisement

Pope escapes German seat belt fine

Author thumbnail
Pope escapes German seat belt fine
Photo: DPA

Pope Benedict XVI will not face charges for not wearing a seat belt in his popemobile during a visit to Germany, after officials confirmed normal traffic rules had been suspended for him.

Advertisement

A Freiburg city spokeswoman said roads had been closed during Pope Benedict's visit in September, when he was driven through crowds in the special vehicle - without a seat belt.

She told the Südkurier newspaper that normal traffic rules had been suspended for the visit as roads the pope used were blocked to public traffic.

Johannes Christian Sundermann, an attorney from North Rhine-Westphalia, had filed a formal complaint on behalf of a Dortmund man against the pope last week, charging that he had failed to buckle up several times during his Freiburg visit.

He had threatened to call several prominent figures as witnesses, including the archbishop of Freiburg.

The attorney had said his client was simply interested in raising awareness about traffic safety, not haranguing the pope.

If the charges had been pressed, Benedict XVI could have been fined between €30 and €2,500, although it is not clear whether diplomatic immunity as head of state of the Vatican would have allowed him to skirt the fine.

The Local/mdm

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also