German comedian to stand trial in Berlin over joke about Trump assassination attempt

German comedian Sebastian Hotz will stand trial over a joke about an assassination attempt on the President of the United States, Donald Trump. This was reported on July 11 by the Suddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) newspaper.

It is noted that Hotz posted humorous messages on the social network X (Ex. Twitter). The recordings were subsequently deleted.

The hearing in the case is scheduled for July 23.

"The fact that now, on July 23, almost exactly one year later, he will have to appear before the Tiergarten district court (a district within Berlin. - Ed.) as a defendant because of this tweet, is an unexpectedly belated joke, which this time will not seem funny to everyone," the publication says.

In 2024, Trump survived two assassination attempts. The first occurred on July 13 at an election rally in Pennsylvania. The politician was wounded in the ear at a tangent. The second attempt was made on September 15: there was a shooting at a golf club in West Palm Beach. Trump was 500 m away from the scene. The perpetrators were detained in both cases.