If the court has determined a "severe gravity of guilt" exists (besondere Schwere der Schuld), parole is delayed for a non-specific period beyond 15 years (§ 57a StGB).
Such a long length was due to his involvement in multiple killings, lack of remorse, and his affiliation with a terrorist group.
Such a ruling mandates continued imprisonment de jure, as being safe toward society is required to be paroled from a life sentence (§ 57a I Nr.
However, the case was appealed to the German Constitutional Court (BVerfG, Judgment from 29.11.2011 - 2 BvR 1758/10),[3] which held that the decision to hold the prisoner beyond the original 38 years was unconstitutional for case-specific reasons.
One of the most prominent "long termers" has been Heinrich Pommerenke, who in total had served 49 years, from 1959 until his death in 2008, for mass murder and rape.
This is technically not considered a punishment, but a decision to protect the public, and elements of prison discipline that are not directly security-related are relaxed for those in preventive detention.
Since 2004, it has also been possible for preventive detention to be ordered by a court after the original sentencing if the danger that a criminal poses upon release becomes obvious during their imprisonment.
According to data from the federal ministry of justice (1998) the average time served for a life sentence in Germany is 19.9 years.