Lawyer files official complaint about non-arrest of abusive son

PHILIPSBURG–Attorney-at-law Geert Hatzmann on Monday filed an official complaint with the Joint Court of Justice against the non-arrest of a man (35) who allegedly severely mistreated his 58-year-old mother on February 22.

Almost three weeks later the son is still a free man, much to the chagrin of the victim’s lawyer, who is a staunch defender of victim’s rights.

Last week, Hatzmann informed the media about this case in his efforts to persuade the Prosecutor’s Office to take his client’s attacker off the streets.

“For me, it is beyond shame that a man in the prime of his life beats up his nearly 60-year-old mother in such a way that even two weeks later she still cannot walk. It is clear that tit for tat is needed. In cases like this the Prosecutor’s Office cannot hide behind its eternal mantra of a lack of investigative capacity. The legal order has been severely shocked and you cannot ‘sell’ this slack attitude to the heavily-traumatised victim. In my opinion it is almost an invitation to family and friends to take the law into their own hands,” Hatzmann said last week about the Prosecutor’s Office’s apparent reluctance to pick up this case.

On Monday, Hatzmann said that the publicity about this case had not yielded any results. “I called the police again this afternoon and the man has still not been arrested. Therefore, I will submit a complaint with the Joint Court of Justice in which I will request the Court to order the immediate prosecution of the man in question,” Hatzmann said.

According to the lawyer, he had only received positive reactions from all layers of society about the media reports about this case. “The gist [of the reactions – Ed.] is that it is a disgrace that the Prosecutor’s Office is not doing anything in this case,” Hatzmann said.

“The Prosecutor’s Office does not exclude possible arrests in the investigation, but it is too early for that now,” spokesperson Gino Bernadina said last week.

Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/64333-lawyer-files-official-complaint-about-non-arrest-of-abusive-son

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