The loss of manners, especially in the digital space, is a general social grievance. In Lower Saxony the question currently arises as to how far this process has penetrated into higher circles of the judiciary, specifically up to Gert Armin Neuhäuser, the President of the Osnabrück Administrative Court. A few days ago, as part of a suspicious report, the “taz” raised the question of whether the 60-year-old lawyer was behind the Instagram account “profdrcn”. What is certain is that numerous derogatory and disparaging comments were made from this account. “profdrcn” commented on the post of a woman who made her cancer public with the remark: “The chemo must have blown her brain away.” He added “Whale watching season has started” under photos of larger women. The “taz” also points to contributions such as “The geriatric nurses will hopefully get a disgusting allowance in fifty years” and “presswurst, you have insulted my eyes”, with which “profdrcn” provides an insight into the world of his thoughts, which seem to be directed primarily against women. The “taz” lists a number of clues to support the suspicion that Gert Armin Neuhäuser is behind the “profdrcn” profile: The account “profdrcn” was called “profdrgan” until some time ago, and “GAN” is still prominently displayed in the Instagram bio, which corresponds to Neuhäuser’s initials. In addition, “profdrcn” describes himself as a “lawyer” and “university teacher” in his posts. When a user openly addressed the account as “Gert-Armin Neuhäuser” in the fall of 2024, it replied “please without a hyphen.” A sensitive case for the judiciary The account “profdrcn” also spoke about the unusability of its company electric car, a VW ID 4, in the northern German lowlands. Neuhäuser has a VW ID 4 as a company car. In May 2023, “profdrcn”, then still called “profdrgan”, also commented favorably on the opening of a Rinteln butcher shop, which thanked it with the words “Thank you Gert-Armin – congratulations on your professional success”. Neuhäuser, who comes from Rinteln in Lower Saxony and is active in local politics there, had received his certificate of appointment as court president two days earlier. Taken together, all of this forms a sufficient basis for suspicious reporting. There is no proof that Neuhäuser is the owner of the account “profdrcn” and made the statements himself. Neuhäuser does not answer the question of whether he is behind the account. Even when asked by the F.A.Z., he neither denied nor confirmed it. This makes dealing with the case tricky for the Lower Saxony judiciary. Investigations into suspected insults Justice Minister Kathrin Wahlmann (SPD) announced that she condemned such posts in the “strongest possible terms” “regardless of the question of the authorship of the postings in the specific case”. The Lower Saxony Higher Administrative Court has asked Neuhäuser to make a statement, which, according to the authorities, is now available. In addition, the Ministry of Justice informed the “Central Office for Combating Hatred and Incitement on the Internet” set up at the Göttingen public prosecutor’s office about the case, which has now initiated an investigation “against a judge of the Osnabrück Administrative Court” on suspicion of insult, as the Ministry of Justice reported to the F.A.Z. announced on Wednesday. Neuhäuser has now resigned from his position as chairman of the Association of Lower Saxony Administrative Judges. Apart from that, however, the court president appears to be inclined to riot, which is already evident in his choice of lawyer. Neuhäuser mandated Joachim Steinhöfel, a media lawyer known for his rude approach, who is now accusing the “taz”: The newspaper is engaging in “denunciation” and aims to damage judicial independence, Steinhöfel writes to the F.A.Z. He also speaks of a “politically motivated campaign” and is probably alluding to a ruling by the Osnabrück Administrative Court, which in 2024 rejected the desired removal from duty of police officers who had made racist and anti-Semitic comments in chats. More on the topic The lawyer even sent a complaint to the Press Council, in which he told the “taz” not only a violation of the press code, but also “discrediting the free choice of lawyers”. Accuses of “coercion”.
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