Philip Manshaus’s lawyer is asking for the criminal case against him to be reopened. His defender Unni Fries confirms this to Dagbladet.
Manshaus has been sentenced to 21 years in custody with a minimum term of 14 years for the murder of his stepsister Johanne Ihle-Hansen and the terrorist attack against the al-Noor mosque in August 2019.
– He is admitted to a psychiatric hospital, he has been psychotic for a relatively long time, says Fries.
Sent today
The lawyer argued that Manshaus was psychotic at the time of the crime during the trial in 2020, but did not win, as the court concluded that he was criminally sane.
– His therapist has no doubts. He is very seriously ill, she says.
Fries has sent the petition to the Re-admission Commission for Criminal Cases today.
During the trial, Manshaus pleaded racist motives for the actions, and pleaded not guilty as he invoked emergency justice.
Strictest ever
The custodial sentence is the most severe ever handed down in a Norwegian courtroom. It is not time-limited and can be extended as long as the court finds that there is a risk of repetition.
State Attorney Johan Øverberg was the prosecutor during the trial against Manshaus.
– I have no comment on this, other than that we will take note of it, says Øverberg to Dagbladet.
Elisabeth Hagen, solicitor for Johanne Ihle-Hansen’s mother Ellen Ihle-Hansen, says that she and the client were informed of the reopening request a few days ago.
– We take this into account, says Hagen to Dagbladet.