Overview

• The trial opened at Landgericht Bielefeld on July 29 against the 60-year-old defendant from Werther in Ostwestfalen.
• He faces charges of accessory to manslaughter after prosecutors say he helped his father kill himself and his dementia-afflicted mother in January 2024.
• Investigators allege he acquired helium cylinders, two face masks and built a holding apparatus for the fatal inhalation.
• Prosecutors argue his father’s heavy burden of caring for an increasingly demented spouse drove the lethal plan.
• The court has scheduled two more hearing days through August 7 to probe legal limits on assisted euthanasia.