EU Parliament Receives Request to Lift Arno Bausemer’s Immunity

Bausemer, a member of the Europe of Sovereign Nations group and treasurer of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) in Saxony-Anhalt, is accused of attacking the teenager during the region’s election campaign in August. He acknowledged using a baseball bat, saying he had “caught the teenager red-handed” while the boy was allegedly vandalising AfD campaign posters. The Saxony-Anhalt State Criminal Police Office said a suspected blunt weapon was allegedly used.

A few days after the alleged assault, Bausemer was stopped at a traffic control. A blood sample reportedly showed an alcohol level of one gram per litre, twice Germany’s legal limit.

Parliamentary immunity is intended to let MEPs carry out their mandates independently, without fear of unjustified legal action, Wouter Wolfs, a politics researcher at KU Leuven, told EUobserver. It protects members from detention over their opinions or votes, as well as from prosecution for alleged offences. An exception applies when someone is caught in the act, though the meaning of that provision can be disputed.

The immunity of 10 MEPs is currently under review in the European Parliament, in cases involving allegations ranging from a labour dispute to Holocaust denial. Wolfs said the Parliament has sometimes retained immunity on “rather doubtful grounds” when political allies protected members, but that MEPs more often end up facing trial. German Green MEP Daniel Freund told EUobserver that delays in lifting immunity undermine the Parliament’s credibility and the principle that everyone is equal before the law.

The Parliament’s legal affairs committee examines waiver requests before a plenary vote. The process usually takes about five months from receipt of a complaint, and can take up to a year. Wolfs said he expected lawmakers to lift Bausemer’s immunity so proceedings could resume.