Baader-Meinhof Gang killer seeks parole

BERLIN, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- A member of the violent anti-capitalist German terrorist organization, the Baader-Meinhof Gang, may soon be released after 24 years in prison.

Brigitte Mohnhaupt is one of two members of the group remaining behind bars. She was sentenced to five life terms plus 15 years for killing three business leaders. One of the victims, Hanns-Martin Schleyer, head of the West German Employers' Federation, was tortured for weeks before he was put to death.

Prosecutors have backed her bid for release on the grounds that she is no longer a danger to society, Der Spiegel reported. But relatives of some of her victims oppose her parole, saying she has expressed no remorse.

The hearing was not open to the public, The Times of London reported. The judges involved are expected to make a decision during the next few weeks.

Mohnhaupt has not apologized publicly for the killings.

"I think it would be inappropriate to say now, 'I regret my crimes'," Franz Schwinghammer, her lawyer, said. "It would come over as rather insulting to the families of the victims."

The group killed 34 Germans and, in an attack on a British base, 27 members of the RAF.

Three leaders, Ulrike Meinhof, Andreas Baader and Gudrun Ensslin, killed themselves in prison 30 years ago, while others in the group have been released. One, Christian Klar, is not eligible for parole for two years but has appealed for clemency.