Injunction against involuntary administration of atypical neuroleptics to a compulsory care patient

The Federal Constitutional Court's Second Senate, Third Chamber, granted the constitutional complaint and renewed the existing interim injunction for a further period of six months, extending its validity until June 21, 2011, or until a final decision on the merits. The case involved a constitutional complaint filed by a compulsory care patient (Maßregelpatient) challenging the involuntary administration of atypical neuroleptics, seeking to prevent such forced medication under a prior injunction dated June 22, 2009, which had already been renewed twice. The decisive legal basis for the continued protection is Article 19(4) of the German Basic Law, which guarantees effective legal protection, and the principles governing temporary legal protection (einstweilige Anordnung) in constitutional proceedings, where the court balances the patient's fundamental rights against the state's interest in maintaining public safety during the pendency of the main proceedings.