§ 217 StGB im Lichte des strafrechtlichen Rechtsgutskonzeptes

Establishing § 217 StGB must be counted among those legislative projects that can be criticised for not referring to the legal interests that should be protected. The study shows that the implementation of § 217 StGB has missed the purpose of criminal law to protect legal interests in the sense of “ultima ratio” sanctions. Even if the provision is aimed at protecting legal rights such as life and human autonomy, the legislator has failed in this respect. Instead, the provision reflects the purpose of preventing a “suicide culture”. Following the doctrine of criminal law being limited to protecting legal interests, such an ethical purpose falls outside this scope.
However, it seems unlikely that the Constitutional Court will reject § 217 StGB as being unconstitutional. Therefore, the provision must be construed in a practical manner and in the light of its supra-individual purpose, i.e. preventing a “suicide culture”.