According to mittelhessen.de’s paywalled article, a far-right local politician from the small town of Leun in the Lahn-Dill district of Hesse has been convicted for wearing and downplaying unconstitutional symbols at a counter-demonstration to the CSD Wetzlar on June 14, 2025. The case centered on tattoos that were publicly visible.
The Wetzlar District Court sentenced the 44-year-old man to a fine of 2,850 euros (95 daily installments of 30 euros) and ordered him to cover the costs of the proceedings. The verdict is already final, as neither the defense nor the state prosecutor filed an appeal. Publicly displaying Nazi symbols is punishable in Germany under Section 86a of the Penal Code (StGB). The penalty can be up to three years in prison or a fine.
Politician from the former NPD
The convicted man is a member of the party “Die Heimat,” which until 2023 was known as the NPD. He serves on Leun’s city council and was acting as a marshal for the CSD counter-demonstration in Wetzlar when the public event took place. He wore numerous tattoos bearing far-right symbols, some of which have been deemed unconstitutional. This included, for example, a symbol of the SS, the Nazi Schutzstaffel. Judge Michaela Friedrich‑Rödig explained that one may support the Die Heimat party in any way one chooses—it is not banned. However, in Germany “SS symbols are absolutely forbidden—the public knows this.” The defendant had asserted during proceedings that he did not realize the symbols were unconstitutional.
The CSD Wetzlar event was last year the first Pride celebration in Germany’s twelfth-largest city in seven years. Approximately 550 people protested against queerphobia. The motto was: “Never Again Silent.”
