Assessment of a facial strike as a "serious offense" for dangerousness prognosis under § 63 StGB

The Federal Court of Justice’s 5th Criminal Senate dismissed the defendant’s appeal against the Lower Regional Court Görlitz’s judgment of March 4, 2025, leaving the lower court’s sentence in force and ordering the defendant to bear the costs of the appeal. The dispute centered on the appropriateness of the sentencing framework, specifically the application of measures for the mentally ill under § 63 StGB, where the defendant challenged the court’s assessment of criminality and the resulting disposition. The court upheld the lower tribunal’s dangerousness prognosis, affirming that the initial act of assault—striking the victim in the face—constituted a "serious offense" (erhebliche Tat) within the meaning of § 63 sentence 1 StGB, and clarified that the citation of § 63 sentence 2 StGB in the original judgment was a clerical error, thereby rejecting the legal error alleged by the appellant.