Schuss in der Nacht (2020)

On June 1, 2019 at around 11:30 p.m. the shot was fired, which marked a turning point in the Federal Republic. In the small Hessian town of Wolfhagen-Istha, the Kassel District President Walter Lubcke is murdered that night, while the annual wheat fair just a few meters away puts the residents in a party mood. There is a DNA trace on Walter Lubcke's clothing, which on June 15, 2019 leads the investigators to his alleged murderer: Stephan Ernst. Right-wing extremist Ernst, with a criminal record, is arrested by a SEK unit in Kassel. A first background check reveals: Stephan Ernst is known to the security authorities, but they haven't had him on their radar for six years. Now he's back. And a person is dead. The docudrama "Shot in the Night" tells emotionally and at the same time rich in facts how the fatal attack on the Kassel district president came about. It tells of the first right-wing extremist murder of a politician since the time of National Socialism. The film is based on intensive research and discussions with those involved on site. Above all, the script is based on the minutes of Stephan Ernst's first confession, which he later revoked and replaced with two new confessions. These minutes make it oppressively clear how Ernst became increasingly radicalized and how Walter Lubcke, as a representative of a caring attitude towards refugees, became a figure of hatred for right-wing extremists. The 90-minute film combines scenic elements with documentary material and also reconstructs the citizens' meeting in Lohfelden, Hesse, at which Walter Lubcke clearly and uncompromisingly advocated the values of democracy. That same evening he became - initially on the Internet - the enemy of the right-wing scene. The hateful words turned into deeds in the end and the silence of the audience in Lohfelden grew into a feeling of shame for many today, as they report in front of the camera.