Overview
- The Bundestag, which voted Thursday after a short debate, rejected Green and Left bills to remove fare evasion from the criminal code.
- The tally put Greens and The Left in favor, with CDU/CSU, AfD and SPD voting against the drafts.
- The decision keeps riding without a ticket a crime under Paragraph 265a, which can bring fines that become jail if unpaid, and operators also add an extra fee of about €60 as a civil penalty.
- Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig and SPD legal voices had urged ending criminal cases to ease crowded courts and prisons that now process many low-harm offenses.
- Opponents in the Union parties and the police union warned that dropping the offense would weaken deterrence and lead to more fare dodging.