Rammstein: Expert opinion could exonerate Till Lindemann

Lawyers Simon Bergmann and Christian Schertz announced in a press release on Monday that they commissioned a medical investigation that they believe could exonerate their client, Till Lindemann. 

The investigation comes on the heels of claims made by Shelby Lynn, a fan from Northern Ireland who attended a Rammstein concert in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius in May, that she could not explain various bruises on her body because she had been given drugs after being invited backstage following the concert.

Lynn published pictures and a video of hematomas on her body on social media. The law firm Schertz Bergmann, which Till Lindemann hired for the case, had this footage analyzed by the Institute of Forensic Medicine at the University Hospital of Cologne. According to their letter, the aim was to assess  "whether the injuries could be attributed to physical abuse."

The lawyers quoted the expert opinion prepared by the director of the Cologne Institute, Markus Rothschild, who said "the documented injuries tend to speak for an accidental event."

'No evidence of sexual violence', says expert

Rothschild explained in writing to DW that the number of requests to provide an opinion based on interpretation of an image or video material "has increased sharply in recent years." The Cologne-based institute has "great experience and expertise," he said, but also acknowledged that, in his capacity as an expert witness, that there are always "certain limitations" in the "the assessment and interpretation of photos or video material."

"The material that could be viewed was of relatively good image quality," he added. 

Lynn had also publicly alleged that Till Lindemann asked to have sex with her when they met back stage, and that her refusal had angered him.

But according to the expert opinion prepared by Markus Rothschild, there were "no indications of sexualized violence as the cause of the injuries documented on the witness."

At the end of May, Lynn had clarified on Twitter that Lindemann had not touched her and that she had never claimed to have been raped by him.

Berlin investigation not based on criminal charges

The lawyers also commented on the ongoing investigation into Lindemann in Berlin, having noted that the prosecutor's office in Vilnius has discontinued the investigation opened there after Lynn's complaint.

"The preliminary proceedings are not based on criminal charges filed by alleged victims," wrote the lawyers of the Berlin investigation. It is instead responding to complaints made by uninvolved third parties that are based "exclusively on media reports and accusations on social networks." So far, the lawyers claim that there is "no objective evidence" that "speaks in favor of our client committing a crime."

Lindemann's lawyers confirmed, as announced in early June, that they are taking action on behalf of their client "against inadmissible reporting and untrue statements of fact in the media or on social networks."

Specifically, they mention the application for an injunction against reporting by the news magazine Der Spiegel, in which, among other things, they allege that their client's privacy had been violated. The lawyers have also issued a cease-and-desist declaration against statements made by the YouTuber, Kayla Shyx, on June 6 in support of Shelby Lynn.

Rammstein's Berlin office attacked

On Tuesday, several window panes at the Rammstein headquarters in Berlin were smashed. Criminal charges were filed for damage to property, according to the German news agency DPA.

On the Kontrapolis website, which is a self-described "news and debate platform," an anonymous group has claimed responsibility for the attack, writing: "On the night of June 26, we attacked the headquarters of Rammstein," the group wrote. "The front windows were smashed and under the ugly Rammstein logo it now says >>No stage for perpetrators<<."

One of two petitions signed by some 100,000 people has demanded that the Rammstein concerts scheduled in Berlin be canceled due to the allegations of sexual assault against Lindemann.

A version of this article was originally published in German.