The court's question "what do you earn per month?" is and was never part of the personal interview, but always part of the "matter". The question about income is often asked here, probably for tactical reasons. If the defendant or the defense attorney (as agreed) replies that no information will be provided, or if the answer is "a regular income," it is not uncommon for the court or the public prosecutor to hear statements such as "then I'll have to have a search," or (a little more friendly, though anticipating a conviction)"then we'll have to estimate".
At the District Court of Bonn, someone really wanted to know and not only threatened, but also ordered a search of the defendant's apartment to determine his personal and economic circumstances, even before the upcoming trial.
From the grounds for the search warrant, it can be seen that the court, due to the silence of the defendant in parallel proceedings regarding his personal circumstances, suspected that the defendant would also behave in a similar manner in the upcoming main hearing and, in order to avoid an estimation of the monthly incomeincome in the event of a conviction of the defendant, the search to determine the "living arrangements" of the defendant.
In its decision of October 28, 2020 - 50Qs 857Js721/20-36/20 - the Regional Court of Bonn correctly ruled that the search was unlawful. The Regional Court found the search to be disproportionate.
"Due to the severity of the associated encroachment on the fundamental right of the inviolability of the home under Article 13 of the Basic Law, the principle of proportionality must be observed to a particular extent when searching the home.
Such a search would only be conceivable if, on the basis of the available evidence, it was not possible to estimate the financial circumstances of the defendant, which would only be the case in very limited exceptional circumstances.
The decision of the Regional Court of Bonn is to be fully endorsed. For the purpose of a better defense, but also on the basis of fundamental considerations, all those affected by such a search will almost without exception be advised to take legal action against the search warrant and/or the execution of the search warrant.
The statements represent initial information that was current for the law applicable in Germany at the time of initial publication. The legal situation may have changed since then. Furthermore, the information provided cannot replace individual advice on a specific matter. Please contact us for this purpose.