Expert opinion from psychiatrist expected.
Dragonlord in court again on Wednesday: Must Rainer W. now go to prison?
by Ulrike Löw

On March 23, YouTuber Rainer W. will be back in court as the self-proclaimed "Dragonlord".
Nuremberg - Thousands of people follow Rainer W. (32) on YouTube - many because they hate him. The virtual dispute has long since escalated in the real world: Insults and bodily harm also earned his anti-fans punishments, and now the question is whether Rainer W. will have to go to jail.
The legal accusation in the case of Rainer W.: He hit a man on the forehead with a flashlight, put another man in a headlock, threw bricks at a moving car, and insulted police officers with nasty tirades live on the Internet stream.
On October 21, 2021, the district court of Neustadt a. d. Aisch sentenced him to two years imprisonment for this. Now W. will stand trial again on March 23, 2022 - because he was not granted probation. He has appealed because he hopes for leniency and wants to avoid going behind bars once again. The public prosecutor's office has also filed an appeal.
Rainer W. has several previous convictions for assault and insult. He was already on probation before this verdict - and the legal rules of the game are quite clear: anyone who does not prove himself and does not go unpunished during the probationary period, i.e. recidivates, does not receive a sentence that is suitable for probation again, but has to go in.
Provocation is part of the Dragonlord's business
But this legal question has been overshadowed for months by the moral uproar and the discussion about hate and incitement on the Internet. One thing is certain: video blogger Rainer W. is met with the contempt of thousands and thousands of haters in virtual and real life. And one thing is also certain: YouTuber Rainer W. earns his money through attention - both negative and positive. And provocation is also part of his business, because he derives his popularity and the number of his clicks from the fact that he is hated.
The judge's decision in October 2021 was hotly debated. The judiciary, society, the authorities were pilloried. SPIEGEL columnist Sascha Lobo was particularly harsh in his judgment. He spoke of state failure, saying that the Federal Republic could do nothing to counter a hate mob.
Fact: Ever since Rainer W. named his address in the village of Altschauerberg in the district of Neustadt a. d. Aisch in one of his videos in 2014 and asked his anti-fans to come to him, they did. The 42 inhabitants in Altschauerberg did not come to rest, but were reduced to the role of extras in a game in their own village, the "Dragon Game", as Rainer W., his fans and anti-fans dub it. For the players, it's a folk festival. For the locals, it's a nightmare with lots of trash left behind and garden fences pissed all over.
Trouble with the police, nuisance for the residents
In addition, the Neustadt a. d. Aisch police department has about 50 employees and covers an area of about 703 square kilometers with a population of about 61,000. In the village of Altschauerberg, with its 42 inhabitants, the officers have been on five to 15 calls for years. Daily.
And it is also a fact that several trials against Rainer W. and also against several of his anti-fans have already taken place in the district court of Neustadt a. d. Aisch. The public prosecutor's office is conducting at least 152 proceedings against Hater. And when a trial against Rainer W. is scheduled at the local district court, it is hardly possible to work there, the staff are called non-stop.
Due to the strain, the market town of Emskirchen has long since issued a general order - more than eight people are not allowed to gather there. Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann, among others, promised help. But what instruments does the state still have at its disposal? Should the Ministry of Defense intervene? Send the Bundeswehr to Middle Franconia?
The questionable personality cult around Rainer W. still continues - although the 32-year-old has meanwhile sold his house (the so-called Drachenschanze) to the municipality. The authorities just had the house demolished. Now haters came to take photos or film interior views. Will peace now return to Altschauerberg - regardless of the trial?
Dragonlord on tour in Germany - will he now have to go to prison?
Rainer W. himself is currently traveling around the country in his car, sending videos of his trip to the web. YouTuber, he says, is his profession after all. But you could also say he is still looking for the echo of the haters.
In an interview with our newspaper back in the fall of 2021, media ethicist and media scientist Christian Gürtler named a group dynamic that had taken on a life of its own over time. He said he was not aware of any case of a similar dimension anywhere in the world. This case was also so outstanding because it did not want to end - and Rainer W. contributed a lot to it.
Whether Rainer W. can expect leniency in the appeal hearing is currently open. But at least what is going on behind his forehead will be discussed in more detail. A psychiatrist has spoken with him at length, and this expert opinion will have a significant influence on the judges' decision.