A federal court Thursday upheld the prison sentences of four people convicted in the deadly 1986 bombing of a West Berlin disco, rejecting appeals from both prosecutors and the defendants. The blast at the La Belle disco, which a Berlin court ruled in 2001 was planned by Libya’s secret service, killed two U.S. soldiers and a Turkish woman and injured 229. The defendants received sentences ranging from 12 to 14 years in prison. Prosecutors maintained the jail time was too short and sought a retrial, while the defendants said the sentences were too harsh. But the Federal Court of Justice dismissed all arguments, saying the Berlin court ruling was “free of legal errors.” “This lengthy process is now over, and I hope it will bring a certain degree of satisfaction to all sides that it is legally concluded,” presiding Judge Monika Harms said as she read the verdict. Richard George, a 44-year-old former U.S. soldier who was the barkeeper on the night of the bombing, was disappointed the defendants would not get life sentences. Full Story
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