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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Unregistered ship |
Sentence: |
"€10,000 fine" |
Years Imprisoned: |
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Year Crime: |
2018 |
Year Convicted: |
2019 |
Year Cleared: |
2020 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
Malta |
County or Region of Crime: |
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Result: |
Judicially Exonerated |
Summary of Case: |
"Claus Peter Reisch was wrongly convicted on May 14, 2019 of entering Maltese territorial waters in June 2018 without the necessary registration or licence. Claus Reisch was the German captain of the ship MV Lifeline that in 2018 brought 234 Africans it had picked up in Libyan waters. Maltese authorities prosecuted Reisch based on their allegations the ship was incorrectly registered in the Netherlands and didn't have the necessary documents to enter Malta, and it was a vessel used for commercial purposes without a license. The Lifeline was registered as a pleasure craft in the Netherlands, but Dutch authorities said this constituted only a certificate of ownership and did not grant the right to fly the Dutch flag. After his arrest Reisch was released on bail pending his trial. After his conviction Captain Reisch was fined €10,000 (US$11,200). The judge denied the prosecution's request to confiscate the MV Lifeline, on the basis Reisch did not own the vessel. Reisch appealed. On January 7, 2020 the appeals court quashed Reisch's convictions on the basis he lacked criminal intent to violate the maritime laws. " |
Conviction Caused By: |
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Innocence Proved By: |
"On January 7, 2020 the appeals court quashed Reisch's convictions on the basis he lacked criminal intent to violate the maritime laws." |
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Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
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Age When Released: |
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Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
White |
Information Source 1: |
"MV Lifeline rescue ship captain wins appeal over €10,000 fine: Claus Peter Reisch has conviction quashed, By Edwina Brincat, Times of Malta, January 7, 2020" |
Information Location 1: |
https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/mv-lifeline-rescue-ship-captain-wins-appeal-over-10000-fine.761502 |
Information Source 2: |
"Captain fined over Lifeline registration, By Jacob Borg and Philip Leone-Ganado, Times of Malta, May 14, 2019" |
Information Location 2: |
https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/lifeline-captain-fined-10000-over-migrant-rescue-vessel-registration.709936 |
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Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org