THE HAGUE, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The man who killed Dutch populist politician Pim Fortuyn in 2002 won a court ruling on Tuesday that he no longer needs to report to the probation services every six weeks.
Volkert van der Graaf, now 48, was sentenced to 18 years in jail for killing outspoken Fortuyn. That made the first notable political assassination in the Netherlands since 1672 excluding WWII.
After serving two-thirds of the sentence, Van der Graaf was freed in 2014 under strict conditions, a standard procedure under the Dutch penal system. The conditions of the release include, among others, no new offenses, regularly reporting to the probation service, a media ban and a ban on contact with the relatives of Fortuyn.
Two weeks ago, Van der Graaf went to court saying the condition is making it impossible for him to emigrate. He said earlier that he wanted to start a new life in Germany.
The judge followed the opinion of the Netherlands Institute for Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology and the probation service. Both had indicated that the duty to report no longer has any added value in this case.
According to the judge, the seriousness of the murder did not play a role in the decision about abolishing the duty to report, but the risk of repetition did. The agency concluded that the risk is low and that Van der Graaf has no psychological disorder.
The lawyer of the murdered politician's family said he will contact the Public Prosecution Service to see if an appeal is possible.
Van der Graaf shot Fortuyn dead at a parking lot near Mediapark in Hilversum, North Holland on May 2, 2002, nine days before the general election, for which the controversial politician was running. Hans Smolders, Fortuyn's driver pursued the attacker, who was arrested by the police shortly afterward.
Smolders told Dutch television NOS that he is disappointed with the verdict: "It is bad for the trust of people in the constitutional state. Millions of people follow this case and have emotions with it, and then such a man is put in his own right."
"Every time he comes back in the news, he tears old wounds open to family, friends and many Dutch people. The judiciary should correct his behavior," he said.
