Hamburg fine affair
The Hamburg fine affair - also known as the fine scandal - was an internal judicial matter in which around 1970 judges and heads of the public prosecutor's office from the areas of business and transport were involved.
Legal basis
In addition to fines , the Administrative Offenses Act (OWiG) , which came into force on October 1, 1968, also allowed the proceedings to be discontinued after a sum of money had been paid as a milder measure. In addition to payment to the tax authorities pursuant to Section 47 (3) OWiG, payment to non-profit and similar institutions was also permitted.
Judges and public prosecutors who worked privately (or part-time?) In associations or corporations recognized as non-profit on the board, as legal advisors or members, were therefore inclined to donate amounts of money that had to be paid in connection with the termination of the proceedings to these institutions. They were then commissioned again to provide expert opinions on the procedures in question, to hold lectures, which was derisively referred to as the "Hamburg milking machine".
enlightenment
The practice was not unknown in the legal community . Defense lawyers therefore often tried, even in the case of serious offenses, to end the proceedings by offering an adequate amount of money and to prevent the imposition of a fine. In addition, when the proceedings were discontinued, entry in the register, for example in the central traffic register in Flensburg or in the central trade register, was omitted . This practice became known to the public in the case of a tax reduction of 1.4 million DM , which remained unpunished against the payment of a sum of 400,000 DM in favor of such an institution. When the matter was cleared up, it turned out that the institutions in question were generating up to seven times their previous income.
Effects
The affair in Hamburg prompted investigations in other state justice administrations. Similar machinations were uncovered. The association against alcohol and drugs in road traffic came into the spotlight. A public prosecutor involved in the Hamburg affair chose suicide after being uncovered and a judge involved in the matter was declared insane .
Web links
- Horst Bieber: Collection for colleagues. Hamburg fine affair before the committee of inquiry , collection for colleagues . In: Die Zeit , No. 5/1972
- Source tapped . In: Der Spiegel . No. 4 , 1972 ( online ).
Individual evidence
- ↑ source developed. In: Der Spiegel. January 17, 1972. Retrieved September 25, 2016 .
