Overview

• Prosecutors recommended the fine after stating the actor’s confession and subsequent media scrutiny served as punishment, leading the Amtsgericht Stralsund to close the case.
• Court documents show the four-year-old stuck out his tongue and called the performer ‘stupid Santa’ before the 62-year-old rose and struck him with a 90-centimeter birch branch.
• The defendant, who has portrayed Santa Claus for more than 50 years in a family tradition, said he intended a corrective tap rather than to harm the child.
• According to the boy’s mother, the incident left her son with sleepless nights and a lasting fear of anyone in a Santa suit.
• A judge’s proposal for a personal apology and gift visit was rejected by the mother, and the actor’s defense attorney said he regrets the incident and the end of his career.