Back in 2009, Germany held a 'Love Parade'. The basic description....going back to 1989 in West Berlin....was a parade involve techno-music, a fair amount of ecstasy (the drug) and a high number of gay participants. Most people will argue that the original parade (1989) had around 200 participants.
Over the years, the Love Parade theme grew, and became a big deal. By 2001, the parade attracted around 800,000 to a million individuals. People actually flew in to participate.
Then an odd thing happened....people dropped out. Over 2002 and 2003....the numbers grew less. At some point in the planning for the 2004 and 2005 episodes....because of lack of sponsorship and fewer numbers.....it was cancelled. In Berlin, the hype was over.
Some Germans wanted to continue the Love Parade, but in a different format. So the Ruhr region (NW Germany) sought to attract the parade. The chief idea? Bring folks to Essen. The numbers went back to roughly 1-million participants in 2007. Some folks (outside of journalism) suggest that having it there in Essen....attracted a lot of Dutch folks to attend. The feeling was that things were better planned in the northwest.
So comes 2010's Love Parade. Things went out of hand with the crowd, and at some point....21 people were killed (by the 'crush') and over 600 were injured.
For almost an entire month, this was front-page news and various political folks were demanding a full-up investigation.
What most will argue upon, is that the city planning staff and the internal planners of the Love Parade itself....failed in various ways. But this entire investigation went into a long and lengthy process. Roughly a year ago, they finally started the court case to settle the criminal accusations. The chief problem? They had x-number of months before the legality of the situation ran out.
Well....this week, the court told the participants (from both sides) that they don't think in the six months left....they can close the case and render a verdict. Hostility? A lot of people think that some people should be held personally responsible. They actually want people to suffer consequences for the 21 dead. The court basically says....it'll never happen.
Were the delays shuffled into the system to ensure everyone walked free? Some people will suggest that. In this case, justice cannot be served.
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