Acquittal over pig’s head incident in Hall draws criticism

The acquittal of a 27-year-old Austrian in a case involving a pig’s head left outside a Turkish-origin family’s home in Hall has prompted criticism from anti-racism groups and political figures. ORF Tirol reported that the verdict is not yet final.

The man admitted placing the pig’s head outside the family’s flat and leaving a note reading, “Happy Ramadan, you monkeys.” He said the act followed a long-running dispute with his neighbours and that he had been drunk.

The district court in Hall found that the offence of insult had not been established. In its reasoning, the court said the incident had been directly perceivable by no more than two people outside the family and the accused, as required under the relevant section of the Criminal Code.

Orhan Gütcan, a spokesperson for ADIF, the Federation of Democratic Workers, said many migrants were disappointed by the verdict and described the incident as clearly racist. He said the family’s children had been bullied at school for months over the pig’s head, and that the family had suffered for months. Gütcan also said up to six people, including neighbours, had directly witnessed the incident.

Mirjana Stojaković, head of ZeMIT, the Centre for Migration, Integration and Participation in Innsbruck, said the acquittal sent the wrong signal. She said the act during Ramadan targeted the family’s religious identity and dignity, and argued that calling people “monkeys” was a known form of racist degradation.

Emeritus criminal law professor Klaus Schwaighofer said he could partly understand the surprise at the verdict, but noted that courts must apply the law, including its requirements for how many people must directly witness an insult. He said media attention after the incident would not affect how the offence was classified. He also pointed to possible charges of incitement and to “insult to honour” under Tyrol’s provincial police law.

The acquittal is not legally binding. The public prosecutor’s office can appeal by Friday. An ORF Tirol inquiry about its next steps had not received a response by early Thursday afternoon.