GELEEN/MAASTRICHT - Of the seven suspects in a serious assault in June 2007 in Geleen, in which two men were seriously injured, the court in Maastricht yesterday acquitted four of them because there was no evidence of their involvement in the brawl.Three men were convicted, however. Two of them received 20 months, six of which were suspended, and 16 months, four of which were suspended, respectively, for open violence.

The highest sentence (24 months, six of which were suspended) was for Anthony P., who was the only one convicted of attempted manslaughter in association, or co-perpetration of attempted manslaughter. 'Complicity' seems to imply that, in the eyes of the court, he did not single-handedly commit that attempted manslaughter. But whether this also means that others must have been involved in the brawl other than those on trial is a question the court could not answer yesterday.

The prosecution had demanded the highest sentences against Stephan P. (eight years) and Paul S. (seven years) two weeks ago. Both were acquitted, although S. was given 240 hours of community service for several other assaults in 2007. Although P. was found guilty of smashing glasses in café in November 2007, he will not be punished for that because he was already sentenced to eight years last year for the manslaughter of Fer Loontjens at Carnival 2008.

The court left little of the evidence offered by the prosecution. For example, the statements of a co-defendant may not be used because of their far-reaching unreliability. Although the court took a firm stand against the "explosion of violence" on the night of June 9-10, 2007 at the Geleen Hanenhof, the sentences were relatively low. In particular, in the verdict against Anthony P., who is apparently held responsible for the nearly fatal head injury of one of the two victims, the court referred to "utterly senseless and unacceptable violence." "For such serious offenses, the judiciary actually has hardly any guidelines," said court president Krol.