QUOTE
BERLIN, Germany (Reuters) -- A 59-year-old German man who has spent the last 34 years in jail has turned down offers to be let out, an official said on Saturday.
"He rejected an offer to leave in 1992," Thomas Melzer, a spokesman for the Brandenburg state justice ministry, told Bild newspaper. "We can't do anything if someone sentenced to life in prison doesn't want to leave."
The man, identified only as Gerold H, was convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment in 1972 when the area was part of communist East Germany.
German prisoners have no obligation to agree to leave jail before their sentences have been completed.
Source:
CNN How bizarre, I wonder why he doesnt want to be free. He's been in the clink since he was 25... maybe he thinks its the only life he knows, maybe he doesnt think he deserves freedom, maybe he's afraid of life on the outside...interesting in any case.
EUnomad
Oct 21 2006, 2:44 pm
have you seen the German movie "Goodbye Lenin" He might be having the similar fear... the society he knew when he was sentenced no longer exists.. if he comes into the outside world he would not recognize anything since the East German brands and way of life no longer exists.. In the movie, they hide the changes so the mother doesn't die from shock... this man may not want to deal with having to live in a democracy.
Johnny English
Oct 21 2006, 2:51 pm
You can see his point if the last thing he remembers about his previous life was East Germany in 1972. It was probably an upgrade when he moved into prison.
Bell the cat
Oct 21 2006, 3:10 pm
For many longterm prisoners the prospect of release is actually daunting. Institutionalisation does that to you.
cinzia
Oct 21 2006, 4:04 pm
What BTC said. Even for people who are only in prison a few years, coming out is very stressful.
Living in a prison where everyone has committed a crime is very different from returning to the outside community, where you are somewhat unique. This man probably has friends on the inside and nobody who cares on the outside.
I would hope that in Germany, as in the US, there are state social workers who check up on you and try to ease the situation somewhat.
Bell the cat
Oct 21 2006, 4:18 pm
There was some study in the UK a few years ago that showed that the majority of homeless people in the UK had been institutionalised (prison, mental hospitals, childrens homes, armed services) and had been inadequately prepaed for life outside. I remember that because it seemed a very sad piece of research. Hopefully things have improved a bit since then.
Lassie
Oct 21 2006, 4:47 pm
Why are we feeling sorry for a murderer? Just kick him out and let him deal with it. Consider it an additional part of his punishment.
Bell the cat
Oct 21 2006, 4:53 pm
I can't speak for everyone and I know that a lot of people will disagree with me but in my opinion even murderers have human rights. The issue is that he is being released early, which under German law prisoners are under no obligation to accept. Come on, the tabloids usually opine that life should mean life. He just happens to agree.
Lassie
Oct 21 2006, 5:00 pm
But at the end of the day, this chap has served his sentence and so should just accept his fate rather than refusing to face facts - that he's free.
If the prison service hasn't provided suitable rehabilitation classes then that's a different issue and he should make clear that this is what he wants.
And I agree with you BTC that generally life shouldn't mean life unless someone is truly evil.
Bell the cat
Oct 21 2006, 5:03 pm
I'd agree with you if he had come to the end of his sentence. He has not. He is being released early. And under German law he has the right to refuse to be released early.
Lassie
Oct 21 2006, 5:06 pm
But if he was sentenced in the old East then his sentence would have been (most likely - I'm actually guessing here) harsher than for the same crime in the West. As such surely he should accept that western norms are now in place and life doesn't mean life - it's just the way it is now.
Johnny English
Oct 21 2006, 7:16 pm
He is clearly a basket case, so this is all just a non-discussion. It is not like we are dealing with a sane human being.
Beg Tets
Oct 22 2006, 2:55 pm
Who? Lassie or BTC?
NUTTTR
Oct 23 2006, 4:43 am
QUOTE (EUnomad @ Oct 21 2006, 11:44 pm)
have you seen the German movie "Goodbye Lenin" He might be having the similar fear... the society he knew when he was sentenced no longer exists.. if he comes into the outside world he would not recognize anything since the East German brands and way of life no longer exists.. In the movie, they hide the changes so the mother doesn't die from shock... this man may not want to deal with having to live in a democracy.
I think that would be it! Goodbye Lenin is an excellent movie and explains it well. Maybe he loves the society that convicted him? Who knows... But if he wants to stay... Oh well!
sea-king
Oct 23 2006, 6:13 am
"(prison, mental hospitals, childrens homes, armed services) and had been inadequately prepared for life outside."
Somehow I have the sneaking suspicion that the armed services don´t belong in the above list!
AquaticMeringue
Oct 23 2006, 12:28 pm
QUOTE (Lassie @ Oct 21 2006, 5:47 pm)
Why are we feeling sorry for a murderer? Just kick him out and let him deal with it. Consider it an additional part of his punishment.
If a murderer doesn't feel ready to rejoin society, then it's probably not a good idea to push him into it. It wouldn't be difficult for him to renew his sentence, after all.
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