Sentencing consideration of immigration consequences as a mitigating factor

The German Federal Court of Justice (BGH) dismissed the defendant's appeal, upholding the lower court's conviction and ordering the defendant to bear the costs of the legal remedy. The dispute concerned the sentencing rationale, specifically the defendant's challenge that the trial court improperly considered the immigration-law consequences of the conviction as a mitigating factor. The appellate court held that the defendant was not disadvantaged by this sentencing consideration, as it is established case law that immigration consequences are, in principle, not a determining factor for sentencing discretion, thereby affirming the validity of the original judgment.