If you are a victim according to the Code of Criminal Procedure, you have a wide range of rights.
In particular, the victim has the right to join the criminal proceedings as a private party (see above) and thus has the opportunity, among other things, to file motions for evidence, to address questions to the parties to the proceedings, or to inspect files. Victims of crimes also have the right to defend themselves against the discontinuation of the preliminary proceedings by filing a motion for continuation if they believe that the proceedings have been unjustly discontinued. This is only not possible if the offender is a juvenile.
In addition, a victim has the right to be represented in the proceedings by a lawyer or a recognized victim protection agency. He or she also has the right to written confirmation of the criminal complaint and may participate in protected hearings and crime reconstructions. The victim may also be present at the main hearing and question the defendant, witnesses or experts. There is also a right to translation assistance by an interpreter.
In addition to these general victim rights, there are further rights for certain groups of victims that go beyond them. For example, particularly vulnerable victims have the right to be questioned by a person of the same sex. They can also demand that the public be excluded from the main hearing or refuse to answer individual questions that they consider unreasonable to ask or that concern the most personal area of their lives. Furthermore, they are to be questioned gently in the form of a protected hearing. The victim usually sits in another room and is then connected by sound and video to the interrogation room where the prosecutor, the judge and the alleged perpetrator sit. This prevents the offender and the victim from meeting.
Certain groups of victims, such as victims of terrorist crimes, minors who have witnessed violence in the family or violence against children, relatives of persons whose death was caused by a criminal act, or victims of stalking, are to be granted so-called psychosocial and legal process support upon request. This accompaniment serves in particular to prepare the persons concerned for the proceedings and the emotional stress associated with them. It also includes accompaniment to hearings in the investigation and main proceedings.
A victim is also obliged to testify truthfully as a witness. In certain cases (see above), the testimony may be refused, or there is an exemption from testifying.
