Marla-Svenja Liebich used extremist, racist language for decades as leader of the Blood and Honor neo-Nazi group and was convicted in 2023 of incitement to racial hatred, defamation and other crimes. After exhausting appeals, Liebich received an 18-month prison sentence and registered legally as a woman shortly after Germany's Self-Determination Act took effect in November 2024. A judge ordered Liebich to begin serving the sentence in Saxony and set a two-week deadline to present herself. Authorities assigned the JVA Women's Prison in Chemnitz. Activists and officials allege the gender declaration may have been used to obtain better prison conditions and have called for the law's review.
"Trans-fascism" and "parasites of society" these were the kinds of phrases that the right-wing extremist who now identifies as Marla-Svenja Liebich used for decades as a leader of the "Blood and Honor" neo-Nazi group. In 2023, Liebich was found guilty of incitement to racial hatred and defamation, amongst other crimes. Last year, having exhausted all legal avenues to avoid prison, she was sentenced to serve 18 months in jail.
And then, just weeks after a new national gender identity law was introduced in November 2024, Liebich legally registered as a woman. Last week, she was ordered to begin serving her sentence by a judge in the eastern state of Saxony. While prosecutors declined to confirm to DW her expected date of arrival, they noted that she has exactly two weeks to present herself or risk further prison time.
But the location has already been determined: the JVA Women's Prison in the city of Chemnitz. Progressive activists and Germany's new conservative-led government alike suspect Liebich of having made use of a new law to get better prison conditions by being placed in a women's prison. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt of the Christian Social Union (CSU) has already decided to reevaluate the new Self-Determination Act, telling Stern magazine that the Liebich case could set a bad precedent for abuse by extremists
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