Cannibal may avoid life

Germany's sensational trial of a self-confessed cannibal will end in a verdict today with the defence lawyer arguing his client should get off lightly because his victim wanted to die.

The two-month trial of Armin Meiwes in the central city of Kassel has riveted Germany and the wider world with its gory evidence of the killing and eating of an apparently willing victim, partly recorded on a chilling video filmed by Meiwes.

State prosecutors are seeking a life sentence on a charge of murder motivated by sexual urges. But Meiwes's lawyer wants him to be convicted of "killing on request", a form of illegal euthanasia carrying a sentence of six months to five years.

Even if that argument is rejected, the victim's agreement means Meiwes might not get the full life sentence of at least 15 years. He could be convicted of manslaughter, with a term of between 10 and 15 years, said Professor Arthur Kreuzer of the Institute for Criminology at Giessen University.

Meiwes, 42, well-spoken, polite and fit, could then be out of jail in his 50s. He says he is writing a book on how he came to live his ultimate fantasy.

Even before the trial ends, some legal experts are saying the case could ultimately go to Germany's Supreme Court.

"I know of no comparable case. This will make legal history," Prof. Kreuzer said.

"It is unique that we are levelling the severest charge of murder against someone and yet have to admit that the victim, whether disturbed or not, wanted it. The killer sought out his victim and the victim sought out his killer."

The case is almost certain to be appealed, either by the prosecution or the defence, Prof. Kreuzer said.

If Prof. Kreuzer is right, law books may have to be revised as a result of a case that started in a "slaughtering room" Meiwes set up in the half-timbered house he inherited from his mother in Rotenburg, near Kassel.

Meiwes has offered startlingly frank testimony, telling how he met a 43-year-old Berlin computer specialist, named only as Bernd-Juergen B., via the Internet and arranged a meeting.

During the trial Meiwes's lawyer, Harald Ermel, cited emails in which the victim insisted on being killed and eaten. One read: "There's absolutely no way back for me, only forwards, through your teeth."

Meiwes's video of the killing, in March 2001, persuaded even prosecutors to concede the death was voluntary.

Media and observers were kept outside while the tape was shown to the court. One newspaper said a woman almost fainted during the film, which shows Meiwes talking to the severed head while he disembowels the body, hung from a hook.