Wiesbaden (dpa / lhe) – The Hessian police have 41 mobile devices at their disposal in order to be able to hear victims witnesses of crimes via video recording. In addition, there are 15 stationary video interrogation rooms in the praesidia and at the State Criminal Police Office, according to a response from the Ministry of the Interior to a request from the SPD parliamentary group in Wiesbaden.
According to the Code of Criminal Procedure, there is a general permission for the police to record witness interrogations on video. This also serves to protect victims, for example in the event of sexual offenses, explained the ministry. Multiple and stressful interrogations for the victim of crime could be avoided.
With the 41 mobile audio-video interrogation systems, the police have a “great ability to react and a considerable degree of independence,” explained the ministry. Officials from remote offices who would otherwise have to travel many kilometers to the praesidia for video interrogation could also conduct interrogations on site or in a hospital, for example.
According to the ministry, video conference systems are available in many courts – including all regional courts and the Frankfurt Higher Regional Court. All Hessian courts have also been able to access the “Hessen Connect” online conference since July this year.
The judicial policy spokeswoman for the FDP parliamentary group, Marion Schardt-Sauer, demanded that all civil and administrative courts be equipped with at least one video room by the end of 2021 in order to enable court hearings by image and sound. Digital negotiations would also have the advantage that time-consuming and costly travel for the parties would be avoided.
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