Bespoke translation by yours truly. Original article [A] at Apollo News
Because AfD members in Saxony-Anhalt don't "persistently" distance themselves from other AfD members, a court confirmed the legal validity of revoking the gun license.
In Saxony-Anhalt, a court confirmed that AfD members may have their weapons confiscated.
Several AfD politicians in Saxony-Anhalt had their weapon permits withdrawn due to their membership in the party. This measure had been justified by the relevant agency with the classification of the party by the state Verfassungsschutz [domestic intelligence agency] which categorizes the party as a confirmed right-wing extremist movement. Accordingly, AfD members are considered unreliable under gun laws.
The AfD politicians Christian Mertens and Matthias Kleiser as well as the former AfD politician Frank Pasemann have legally challenged the revocation of their gun licenses and lost in court. While Mertens and Kleiser are being accused of being active members of the party, Pasemann is accused of having supported the party in the past.
The sole exception from a blanket unreliability under gun laws, according to the court, is if the persons "persistently distanced themselves from behaviors and statements by other members who contribute to the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt", as the Süddeutsche Zeitung writes. In addition, the court deemed that it is not sufficient that the plaintiffs had gun licenses for years "without any gun-law-related incidents".
In Thuringia, where the AfD is categorized a right-wing extremist movement by the Verfassungsschutz just as in Saxony-Anhalt, AfD members also got a blanket gun license revocation. The administrative court in Gera judged in August 2023 that one AfD member is to provisionally regain his weapons and his gun license.
The court disagreed with the notion that all AfD members are to be lumped in as unreliable. The court accused the relevant agencies of the requirements for a revocation of the gun license "so far not having been soundly proven".
In addition, the examination of the constitutional loyalty of the first AfD Landrat member in Germany, Robert Sesselmann, which came to the result that Sesselmann is loyal to the constitution, was deemed positive for the plaintiff in court, because that "speaks against the assumption that there exists only one single political direction in the party that dominates all others". In February 2024, the verdict by the administrative court in Gera had been confirmed by the 3rd Senate of the Thuringian upper administrative court.
Saxony-Anhalt
Judificial decision: Weapon ban for AfD members who don't distance themselves from AfD is legally valid
Because AfD members in Saxony-Anhalt don't "persistently" distance themselves from other AfD members, a court confirmed the legal validity of revoking the gun license.
In Saxony-Anhalt, a court confirmed that AfD members may have their weapons confiscated.
Several AfD politicians in Saxony-Anhalt had their weapon permits withdrawn due to their membership in the party. This measure had been justified by the relevant agency with the classification of the party by the state Verfassungsschutz [domestic intelligence agency] which categorizes the party as a confirmed right-wing extremist movement. Accordingly, AfD members are considered unreliable under gun laws.
The AfD politicians Christian Mertens and Matthias Kleiser as well as the former AfD politician Frank Pasemann have legally challenged the revocation of their gun licenses and lost in court. While Mertens and Kleiser are being accused of being active members of the party, Pasemann is accused of having supported the party in the past.
The sole exception from a blanket unreliability under gun laws, according to the court, is if the persons "persistently distanced themselves from behaviors and statements by other members who contribute to the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt", as the Süddeutsche Zeitung writes. In addition, the court deemed that it is not sufficient that the plaintiffs had gun licenses for years "without any gun-law-related incidents".
AfD member in Thuringia had his weapons returned
In Thuringia, where the AfD is categorized a right-wing extremist movement by the Verfassungsschutz just as in Saxony-Anhalt, AfD members also got a blanket gun license revocation. The administrative court in Gera judged in August 2023 that one AfD member is to provisionally regain his weapons and his gun license.
The court disagreed with the notion that all AfD members are to be lumped in as unreliable. The court accused the relevant agencies of the requirements for a revocation of the gun license "so far not having been soundly proven".
In addition, the examination of the constitutional loyalty of the first AfD Landrat member in Germany, Robert Sesselmann, which came to the result that Sesselmann is loyal to the constitution, was deemed positive for the plaintiff in court, because that "speaks against the assumption that there exists only one single political direction in the party that dominates all others". In February 2024, the verdict by the administrative court in Gera had been confirmed by the 3rd Senate of the Thuringian upper administrative court.
