Overview

• Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt told Stern the case shows a “very simple” misuse of the law and said it should be tightened.
• Authorities are reviewing whether Marla-Svenja Liebich will serve her 18-month sentence at the Chemnitz women’s prison.
• Reporting notes suspicions that Liebich changed her legal gender to deride the law or influence detention conditions.
• The Self-Determination Law, in force since November 1, 2024, allows gender and name changes through a personal declaration at registry offices.
• Before the law, two psychiatric assessments and a court order were required, and critics now press for safeguards as LGBTQ advocates warn against stigmatizing trans people over a suspected one-off.