Der Anfangsverdacht der Vorteilsannahme

The subject of the study is the tension that has arisen between the constituent facts of Section 331 (1) of the German Criminal Code (StGB), which have escalated as a result of various amendments to the law, and the fundamental obligation of the prosecuting authorities to investigate. The existence of this conflict is demonstrated by evaluating how the executive power, judiciary and legislature deal with the offense. The latter is done through a comparative analysis of the legislative history of the bribery of elected officials, § 108e StGB. Finally, a comprehensive solution to this conflict, which is independent of individual cases, is developed in a selection of prosecutions based on criteria that are oriented toward the legal interests of criminal law.