German comedian Sebastian Hotz, popularly known by his stage name “El Hotzo,” was acquitted on Wednesday by a Berlin court over controversial social media posts made after last year’s assassination attempt on U.S. President Donald Trump.
Judge Andrea Wilms ruled that Hotz’s remarks, while distasteful, amounted to “non-punishable satire” and did not meet the criteria for disturbing the peace. “People must be able to argue about good and bad opinions,” she stated.
Following the July 2024 attack during Trump’s campaign event in Pennsylvania, Hotz posted on X (formerly Twitter) comparing the gunshots to a missed bus, saying “unfortunately, both had been just missed.” In another post, he wrote, “I think it’s absolutely fantastic when fascists die.”
Trump survived the shooting with only a minor injury to his ear, while one person at the rally was killed and two others seriously injured. The shooter was fatally shot by security personnel.
Hotz later deleted the posts amid widespread backlash. German public broadcaster RBB ended its collaboration with him on a youth program shortly afterwards.
At the Tiergarten district court, the prosecution called for a €6,000 fine, arguing that the posts could incite violence and disturb public order, especially given Hotz’s 740,000 followers on X. The prosecutor contended that satirists should still be held accountable under the law.
In his defence, Hotz argued that his work should be viewed as satire. “I am a little less serious than many of my colleagues,” he said, maintaining that his comments were intended as jokes.
(dpa/NAN)