Vienna court acquits four defendants in police violence trial

A Vienna court has acquitted four defendants in a case involving alleged police violence during the arrest of a 54-year-old Ukrainian man who later suffered a stroke, ORF reported. The verdicts are not final.

The court panel said the defendants’ guilt could not be established with the certainty required in criminal proceedings. The case concerned the man’s claim that he was subjected to police violence during his arrest at Schwarzenbergplatz on May 9, 2024.

Prosecutors alleged that the arrest caused a neck and spinal injury, which subsequently led to the stroke. They also alleged that two police officers and a police lawyer failed to respond appropriately to symptoms after the man was taken to a police detention centre and held in a cell for several hours.

The court’s findings by a forensic medical expert were decisive. The expert concluded that the stroke occurred after 6 p.m., when the man was already at the detention centre. Medical evidence did not establish that the arresting officer contributed to the stroke, and it could not be proven that staff at the detention centre knowingly failed to respond adequately to the symptoms.

The prosecutor initially made no statement on the verdicts. Defence lawyer Astrid Wagner, who represented the police lawyer, said her client had not recognised the stroke. “Otherwise, he would have called the paramedics,” she told the APA.

The 54-year-old, who continues to suffer from the effects of the stroke, was referred to the civil courts with his claims for compensation.