A court has upheld its ruling in the case of a Luxembourg school director found guilty of illegally possessing weapons.
Jean Billa, who has been the only director of the Lycée Edward Steichen in Clervaux since it opened its doors in 2018, has been suspended from office since 2023 over disciplinary proceedings.
In January, judges found Billa guilty of illegal possession of firearms, but did not impose a sentence. It instead granted a so-called “suspension of the sentence” – a suspension of the verdict – for one year, on the condition that Billa did not commit any further offences within 12 months.
The public prosecutor’s office appealed, and the case went before the appeals court last month. The prosecution maintained its demand for a €2,000 fine for Billa.
Earlier this week, however, the appeals court upheld the first-instance ruling, meaning the suspension of the sentence for one year remains in effect.
Suspended school director in court over weapons offences
Police found and confiscated a butterfly knife in his school cupboard and a blank-firing pistol and three rifles at his home. None of the weapons had been correctly registered.
Clervaux school director investigated for drug dealing
Billa said in court in November last year that he had found the firearms when clearing out his deceased mother’s house, admitting that he should have known better than keeping the weapons undeclared. He said the butterfly knife did not belong to him.
The verdict is not yet legally binding. The Court of Cassation could still be involved as a final instance.
There, however, the issue would no longer be one of guilt, but only possible errors in the legal procedures.
Suspended from his post since 2023, disciplinary proceedings have been initiated against him, as well as investigations over separate claims he committed drugs offences and misappropriated public funds.
(This article was originally published by the Luxemburger Wort. Machine translated, with editing and adapted by Kate Oglesby.)
