The Federal Court of Justice (BGH) wants to review the acquittals of two construction managers after the collapse of the Cologne City Archives in 2009 on July 7th. Two people were killed then.
Karlsruhe – On July 7, the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) is reviewing the acquittals of two construction managers after the Cologne city archive collapsed with two dead twelve years ago.
The top criminal judges in Karlsruhe then want to negotiate the revisions of the public prosecutor’s office, as the court announced on Wednesday. A judgment on the same day is possible, but a later date of delivery is often set. (Az. 2 StR 418/19)
When the archive and two residential buildings collapsed on March 3, 2009, two residents were killed. Countless historical documents were spilled and immense damage was caused. According to the Cologne district court, the buildings collapsed because a deep excavation for a new subway station in the immediate vicinity was filled with water and sand through a cracked diaphragm wall. The court found that the cause was a serious mistake during the excavation in 2005: Back then, workers had not removed a block of stone.
The two site managers responsible for erecting the diaphragm wall and excavating the pit were acquitted in October 2018. The district court found violations of the duty of care, but these were not the cause of the collapse. A construction supervisor of the Cologne transport company was sentenced to a suspended sentence for negligent homicide.
He has also appealed – as announced by the BGH, a separate decision is to be made on this. This also applies to the revision of a former senior site manager who was sentenced to probation in a second criminal trial. dpa
