Europe30 September, 20262 min read
Budapest Appeals Court Cuts German Activist Maja T.'s Prison Sentence To Seven Years
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Budapest appeals court cut Maja T.'s sentence from eight to seven years. Maja T. is a German non-binary anti-fascist activist who went to Budapest to counter a far-right rally in 2023.
Appeal Cuts to Seven
Hungary's Court of Appeal in Budapest reduced the prison sentence for German national Maja T. from eight years to seven years. The appeals court judge said the sentence was being reduced because for one of the two counts on which Maja T. was convicted, the defendant should be considered an accomplice rather than a co-perpetrator and should not be considered part of an organised criminal group. The prosecutor had originally demanded more than 13 years in prison, and the range of penalties for the charged acts lay between two and 24 years.
Maja T. had been arrested in Berlin in December 2023 and later transferred to Hungary to stand trial after a lower court handed down an eight-year sentence in February. The appeals process began in mid-September, and the ruling was described as final and not subject to further appeal.
Extradition and Rights
Germany's Constitutional Court ruled in February 2025 that it had been unlawful to extradite Maja T. to Hungary, upholding her argument that the decision violated the European Union's Charter of Fundamental Rights. Maja T. staged a 40-day hunger strike to protest the "unlawful handover" and "inhumane" prison conditions, an allegation denied by Hungary's prison service. Hungary introduced anti-LGBTQ+ policies under former Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who was ousted in an April election, and Brussels says those laws discriminate against people on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Authorities in Hungary gave assurances that non-binary people are not subject to discrimination or violence in prisons there. The Budapest-Capital Regional Court of Appeal reclassified Maja T.'s role from co-perpetrator to accomplice, shortening the sentence by one year.
International Fallout
Ilaria Salis, the first defendant, was protected by parliamentary immunity after being elected to the European Parliament as an Italian representative, and Reuters said she was released from house arrest in June 2024 after she was elected a member of the European Parliament. Reuters said prosecutors were seeking an 11-year sentence for Salis, while Salis and her family said she was innocent. DIE WELT reported that Maja T.'s father Wolfram Jarosch called the proceeding a scandalous one and said, "The sentence has been reduced, but I still consider this verdict to be completely excessive,".
Euronews said supporters put up banners near the court entrance demanding the release of the activist amid a heavy police presence on surrounding streets. Reuters said the case drew international attention when Germany's Constitutional Court ruled in February 2025, and Reuters described the attacks as assaulting people with "various instruments capable of causing death."