Munich (dpa / lby) – The left in Bavaria is taking legal action against the preventive detention anchored in the Police Tasks Act. According to its own statements, the state association filed a popular lawsuit with the Bavarian Constitutional Court on Friday. “For us, the reason for this lawsuit is the completely disproportionate imposition of preventive detention. The preventive detention was introduced by the Bavarian state government on the grounds that it could better defend itself against terrorism,” said state chief Adelheid Rupp.
According to the Bavarian Police Responsibilities Act, citizens can be detained for up to a month on the basis of a judicial decision in order to prevent the commission of an administrative offense of considerable public importance or a criminal offence. This period can be extended by a maximum of one additional month. Most recently, climate activists in Bavaria were repeatedly taken into preventive detention.
Rupp emphasized that there were already major concerns, protests and complaints about the content of the law in 2018. “Unfortunately, concerns have now come true that preventive detention is not being used to ward off terrorist attacks, but against people who are demonstrating for more climate protection with peaceful sit-ins and civil disobedience.”
“We are jointly complaining that the Bavarian state government is further undermining our rule of law with the completely excessive imposition of preventive detention against participants in civil disobedience actions and seriously restricting the fundamental right to freedom of assembly,” said Titus Schüller, member of the executive state board and city council in Nuremberg.
Anyone can assert the possible unconstitutionality of a legal provision of Bavarian state law by complaining to the Constitutional Court. In the popular action, it must then be explained to what extent a fundamental right guaranteed by the constitution is unconstitutionally restricted. However, it is unclear whether there will also be an oral hearing as a result of the lawsuit. The court can reject it if it does not consider this to be necessary based on the factual and legal situation.
