The legal proceedings against Björn Höcke, leader of the AfD in Thuringia, have concluded with the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof) dismissing his appeals. The rulings, issued by the Halle (Saale) Regional Court in May and July of last year, remain in effect.
Höcke was fined a total of approximately €30,000 across two separate cases. These penalties stemmed from instances where, as a speaker at public events, he utilized the slogan “Alles für Deutschland” (“Everything for Germany”). The Regional Court determined that Höcke was aware this phrase was historically associated with the Sturmabteilung (SA), the paramilitary wing of the Nazi party and that its public use is prohibited. He previously contested this knowledge in court.
The first conviction pertained to a 2021 event during the federal election campaign in Merseburg. The second case involved an event in Gera in 2023, where Höcke reportedly alluded to the slogan, allowing the audience to complete it.
The Federal Court of Justice’s decisions, rendered on August 20th (case numbers: 3 StR 484/24 and 3 StR 519/24), affirmed the lower court’s rulings, finding no legal grounds for overturning them.